GUILDS OPPOSED.

Auckland Star, Volume LXVII, Issue 135, 9 June 1936, Page 12

GUILDS OPPOSED.

EMPLOYEES' DECISION.

v i TRADES HALL MEETING.

Opposition to the formation of guilds was expressed at a meeting in the Trades Hall last evening, when there -was. an attendance of about sixty. A resolution was finally carried emphatically condemning the alleged action of employers in forcing employees into the guild movement-and calling on the<Minister of-Labour, the Hon. Ifft-T. Armstrong, to refuse to.register guilds.

The principal-' speaker, Mr. M. J. Clark, organiser of the Clerical Union, declared that many -firms were persuading their employees to form guilds, but some employers were against such organisations. He suggested that the. Federation had sent out. a circular advocating the formation of guilds. Employees were being told that ,if a "shop union" or guild" were formed, all concerned would be able to work in harmony. A further suggestion was that if they joined outside unions all the .privileges they enjoyed at present would disappear. "Putting It Across." ilr. Clark directed attention to the ballot taken amongst 1m nk employees and criticised the circumstances under which the ballot was conducted. Other firms were ."putting it across" their employees in the same way, he said. The speaker, read a copy of a letter forwarded to the Minister of Labour by the employees of a city marketing firm expressing opposition to the guild movement. The workers concerned had awakened to the fact that under the guild they were going tc> lose the benefits of .the industrial legislation. The Government -desired the formation of large unions, which were better to deal with than small' ones. It • was possible for a large • union to have separate awards for different sections of workers.

An appeal to every worker to join a union covered by an award was made by Mr. C. Lindsay, organiser of the Auckland Drivers' Union. He explained that market employees were to have a secret ballot on the guild question, but the ballot papers were to be circulated irrtlie markets. In his opinion, however, the proper place for such a ballot was in a hall.

In reply to questions, the chairman. ' Mr. W. Miller, secretary of the Store--1 men and Packers' Union,-sqid that the Minister of Labour and the Prime Minis. - ter, the Right Hon. M. J. Savage, had definitely made statements against ; guilds. The employers, however, had : insisted that,:"warehousemen .should form ' a guild. From that those, behind the ' guild movement evidently expected some 1 support, though it was difficult to appre- ! ciate their reasons. , Refusal of Membership. Asked what power a union under the i Industrial. Conciliation and Arbitration I Act would have to close its ranks to a • guild, member, Mr. Miller said that somo : unions had special clauses in their eon- • stitution. to, refuse membership. Such . power was held by the Waterside 1 Workers' Union. He could not.say what . would happen in the future to guild ! members wanting to come into trades, unions. Agreements made by guilds with employers might not confer- the. benefits of/ the 40-hour week or other , benefits pf the new industrial legislation, especially the minimum rates of wages.