The Duke's Speeches.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 44, 22 February 1927, Page 4

The Duke's Speeches.

Fellowship and Co-operation in Industrial Life. Ky way of showing the Duke of York's interest and giving a further definition of the "welfare spirit," the following quotations from the speeches he has made in connection with its woi'k may be of interest: — '"I can think of no higher endeavour than that of granting to the workers opportunities of regarding their place of work as a centre in which they can give expression to the very human desire for fellowship and co-operation. ... As time goes on 1 hope to show my interest in all that makes for the well-being of those who are engaged in industrial occupations, on the efficiency of which depends so largely the future of the nation in the world's fight for industrial supremacy." (1919.) "We must educate the world that we stand for a reform to assist and not to resist; that we are out to brighten the lives of our fellow-citizens in the workshops, to count them as men and women and not merely as instruments of production. When it is realised that their prosperity is our country's strength, their contentment her security, and their happiness her best reward, and when it is known what the welfare movement has done in this direc-

tipn, I feel there will be the necessary help forthcoming from those who wish to see the movement extended in the national interest. I am certainly no economist, and possibly an unpractical idealist, but since last summer I am more than ever a believer in the welfare movement as the result of the Boys' Camp)." (1921.) The Human Factor. 'During the last hundred years, owing to the inevitable growth in the size of the industrial unit, the individual worker has been overlooked amidst claims of administration and organisation, and the human factor so important in the earlier history of industry, has been crushed out by the machine. The head of a large concern does not and cannot know each of his employees, and to many thinking minds the break-up of this personal relationship has opened the way for the misunderstanding and the suspicion which is so prevalent among us to-day. In the old days, when the employer could get in personal touch with his men, their welfare was a matter of course to public-spirited employers, but the increasing size and complexity of modern concerns renders this brotherly attitude impossible. The spirit of the Industrial Welfare Society is merely part of a great attempt to assist the renaissance of that spirit of industrial comradeship which has taken hold of the masters and men of this country and among the nations in general, and gradually to restore the old feeling which existed many years ago, whereby any man, whether high up in the grade of labour or a mere novice, was regarded as a human factor in the business organisation. The signs of the time are encouraging for our movement. There is an increased sense of responsibility, for the welfare of mankind, which is a happy legacy of the war; false judgments are being corrected and new ideals are being formed, many opinions are altering and many circumstances are changing. Everywhere, men of all stations and all occupations are found convinced, some of them for the first time, that this question of the human factor in industry must be dealt with in a new spirit, with a new purpose, and with unaccustomed thoroughness if we are to set straight the difficulties that beset our country to-day. Employers of broad sympathies are now turning with generous purpose to the question of industrial betterment, and beginning to realise that there is no wealth but life and that we must recognise the value of every man, woman and child. The society exists for the purpose of focussing and developing the many activities, industrial, educational and recreational indicated by the word 'Welfare.' In no way does the movement interfere between organised labour and employers as regards agreements on wages and conditions of work. It stands for a closer

co-operation and good feeling between all sections of the industrial community; its work is constructive, of high national importance, and will help to smooth the path of social change. Wise men are preparing for the harvest of goodwill and understanding which is necessary for that prosperity which we all hope will be the reward of this country which did so much to save civilisation. We must not be discouraged by apparently small results. We must try

to remember that we are building a national social machinery for the future." (Address to a meeting of business men at the Mansion House, London, March 2, 1921). "Industrialism is recognising the fact that no matter how perfect an organisation or how necessary its existence, the ultimate and only consideration for its success is that of the actual lives and aspirations of the workers who comprise its personnel, and I am proud and thankful that the Industrial Welfare Society has made so definite and valuable a contribution to the building up of this spirit which must prove so revivifying a force in industry. Our stock and goodwill are human life and human happiness, and I am convinced that with the assistance of employers and the co-operation of the employed those who invest in these securities will not fail to reap a substantial dividend." (1922.) "The work of the society is neither spectacular nor capable of producing immediately visible results, but those who have studied it in operation know that it is making real and effective contribution to stability, peace, and efficiency in the industrial life of the nation. It is not to be expected that happiness, understanding and confidence between man and man can be attained by the mere production of any scheme however lofty its ideals and however noble its purpose. We have urged the great moral principles underlying the relations between master and man, and step by step, shop by shop, yard by yard, and mine by mine, we have implanted the seed which gradually and surely is ripening to a real desire for mutual understanding. (1924.) "What we as an organisation have to do is to encourage other employers to follow the example set by members of the society until the principles of industrial welfare and the ideals for which they stand are widely adopted throughout our industries. If this necessary work is not undertaken by the Industrial Welfare Society 1 cannot see how else at the moment it is to be done." (In a message to the society's annual meeting, from which he was absent owing to Queen Alexandra's death). (1920.) In a private letter to one of the society's officials the Duke at the time of his marriage wrote: "I feel that our country would gain so much not only in efficiency, but in that greater commodity—happiness —by the spread of these principles that I wish with all my heart for a large increase in the membership of the society. If lam able to propose for membership at the next council the names of many firms, which at present stand aloof, I shall indeed feel that the Industrial Welfare Society has honoured the occasion of my marriage and my personal happiness in a manner which I very deeply appreciate."