DUAL UNIONISM.

Auckland Star, Volume LVII, Issue 135, 9 June 1926, Page 11

DUAL UNIONISM.

TO WEAKEN LABOUR

ORGANISING THEIR FORCES,

FOR UNITED OPPOSITION.

(By Telesrapa.— £,<eclul t..

DUNEDLN, this day.

A declaration that the Government was attempting to weaken the Labour movement by initiating a policy of "dual unionism" was made in Invercargul yesterday by Mr. G. S. Thomson, of Dunedin, secretary of the Otago and Southland Hotel, Restaurant and Board-ing-house Employees' Union, says the "Southland Times." Mr. Thomson was addressing a meeting of members of the Invercargill branch of this union on the subject of a recent attempt to start another union in Invercargill when there was already one in existence.

After making reference to the attitude of the Labour Department and the Prime Minister towards the unemployed, Mr. Thomson said that he had received letters recently from the Department of Labour in Wellington, in which he thought he could discern something below the surface. With the consent of the officials of the union he left for Wellington with the intention of finding out the exact position. In Wellington he interviewed Mr. C. A. Berendsen, Deputy Registrar of Industrial Unions, and head of the legal branch of the Labour Department, who said that tbe best course was for both sides to lay their cards on the table. During the ensuing conversation he could see that Mr. Berendsen had kept something at the back of his mind. Later he came to the conclusion that this was the matter of dual unionism, a policy of establishing two unions for one class of workers in one place. This, of course, would have the effect of weakening the hand of Labour.

Confirmation of this impression was, he said, later given him by another high Government official, who had himself admitted that such was the Government's policy. It had been carried into effect in Christchurch, where there were now two carpenters' unions, and there seemed to be an attempt to do the same thing in Invereargill.

Mr. Thomson added that he knew that the Minister of Labour was not in favour of the policy which his own Department was carrying out. The position was that Labour was fighting against Labour.

Before concluding his address Mr. Thomson again referred to the Premier's pronouncement regarding the unemployed, that they "were not going to dictate to the Government of this country." Mr. Thomson stated that Mr. Coates, with his military dictatorship, was not going to cut wages down. He (Mr. Thomson) was one of the Labour leaders who were going to prevent that step. He was not going to say now how it was to be done, but while he was in Wellington several members of his party had put their heads together to devise a plan. At present they were organising their forces thoroughly throughout the Dominion, and anyone who attempted to divide the ranks of unionists would meet with their united opposition.