Trade Unions’ Future

Press, Volume CII, Issue 30043, 30 January 1963, Page 10

Trade Unions’ Future

(From Our Oirti Reporter)

PICTON, January 29.

The future of the trade union movement in New Zealand depended on its discovering how to be more effective, how to get the loyalty of its members and how to get enough money to do the job properly, said the Minister of Labour (Mr Shand) at the University Students’ Association’s annual congress at Curious Cove, Queen Charlotte Sound.

"The trade union movement to New Zealand is living on its human capital, living on people who came into the movement 30. 40 or 50 years ago. These men were dedicated to the barite and that battle has been won,*’ be said.

"In many ways trade union organisation is a more difficult job today but the unions are no* getting the same sort of people.’* The unions were to flanger of toeing out on recruiting confident young exemitive officers, said Mr Shand "A number of factors have combined to make the job of a trade union official smrog the worst Mid jobs in the country. By being poor employers they are serving their interests badly.” Men of ability who previously had been forced by lack of opportunity to ’0 into trades, and who later became union leaders were now becoming profawrioritf man, Mr Shand said.

“Trade unions will have to pay competitive salaries for professional organises*,” he said.

One of the weakest pointe in New Zealand unionism was the disastrous proliferation of union*,” said Mr Shand. There were more then 300 unions a-id many st them had fewer than member*. The weakest unions were too small to employ permanent paid officials and too big to be managed part time. The unions had been weakened over the yean by Government legislation which had been designed to support them, said Mr Sltrnd Since the IKl’s, the trade union movemen* Lad looked to the Government B seemed to be a peculiarly New Zealand attitude. Worker* had come to credit the Government, not the union, for many of the good condition* gained. This had weakened the relationship between the union and the

individual worker, he said. “Half of the work done by inspectors of the Labour Department is work which in other countries is done by union secretaries and organisers.” he said. The role and fundamental objective of the trade union movement were just the same a* they ever were, said Mr Shand. Their function was to act as a bargaining agent for worker* who would be in a week pomtion against strong employes*. A strong voice representing organised labour aided the system of checks and balances in society. The trade union movement would continue to make listakes. said Mr Shand but that did not mean the system was wrong. The employers and even the Minister of Labour made mistakes too.

Mr Shand commended the Federation of Labour tor pro vidtag member unions with profesrional service* One of the weaknesses of th* New Zealand industrial system was that both side* went to the bargaining tabte badly prepared and ill-advised. The federation lad taken •ver the bargaining for individual unions, said Mr Shsad 'This ha* proved a blearing from anyone’s point Of view—even if somewhat of a mixed blearing. It has brought the trade union mnwnws to a reeiieatton f its responsibility.”