Labour-only Contracts

Press, Volume CVI, Issue 31139, 16 August 1966, Page 14

Labour-only Contracts

Sir, —It is so easy today for young workers to sneer at present-day trade unions. They automatically have good working condition* and wages. Those did not come in Christmas stockings. Someone had to work—yes, and suffer—before they were attained. Good conditions are oreferable to large wages. The latter can so easily be undermined overnight, but so long as we have responsible trade unionists prepared to maintain such conditions, then the fight is definitely worth while. I trust this satisfies “Frank Statements Please.” Surely the officials he complains about are doing just what he advocates: looking after their members’ interests. 1 left Edinburgh in 1912 and the Red Flag was sung at “The Mound” and the slogan. “Workers, you have nothing to lose but your chains,” was quite commonplace even then. Has John Lee just woken from a trance?—Yours, etc., TOM BRYCE. August 15, 1966. Sir, —I am indeed heartened by the interest honest workers are taking in this question and hope this is a sign of awakening to the danger of power in the hands of irresponsibles. Those trouble-makers give lip service to “democracy” which to my mind is just a meaningless word when mouthed by those who ignore our democratic set-up when it does not suit them. My British blood was warmed by the front-page item in Saturday's issue, but 1 would warn those sturdy honest workers that their enemies will create “incidents” in many ways to put them (honest workers) in the wrong. Now back to the proper working of democracy. The question n my letter in your issue of August 10, “Has the alleged industrial law-breaker been reported to the Denartment of Labour. If not, why not?” —Yours, etc., HONEST SERVICE. August 15, 1966.