COMPULSORY UNIONISM

Auckland Star, Volume LXXIV, Issue 198, 21 August 1943, Page 4

COMPULSORY UNIONISM

(To the Editor) The forthcoming election presents New Zealanders with an opportunity to strike such a blow for democracy as. has not been possible at any time during the past few years. By that I mean that the electors can, and should, demand from their candidates a pledge that they will work to abolish compulsory unionism Admittedly events of the past few years have made many people cynical regarding the value of pledges" but we are also given an unprecedented opportunity of replacing an aged and ineffectual House by one composed of men of exceptional ability and integrity. When the compulsory unionism legislation was first introduced, a great number of workers believed it to be a step of great importance and lasting value To-day few outside of union offices' unconnected with party machines' can regard it as other than undemocratic, un-British and unjust. It is not only a device for keeping a caste of officials in comfortable "essential" jobs, but it also provides a great fin ancial reserve for keeping up the pro" paganda of the political partv paganda of the political party con trolling machine. Even in normal times, few workers feel like attend ing union meetings after they have finished their day's work; to-dav when so many are working lone hours, they do not feel physically ud to it. Nevertheless, they have to pay for an organisation in which they have no voice. The results of this can be readily seen when we mention that few union meetings attract more than a handful of members. Yet there are .issued from those meetings statements purporting to give the views and convictions of all the union membership, a specific case in point is that of one large union the officials of which are seldom silent, which at meetings sometimes achieves an attendance of 25 out of 5000 members. Yet i the views of this one-half of one per cent of the members are givem publicity as'-the views of all the members. I believe in unionism, and that it is indispensable in the modern industrial world, but, like most of my fellow-workers, I do not believe in being conscripted into a union for political purposes. GORDON INGHAM.