LABOUR LEGISLATION.

Dominion, Volume 1, Issue 22, 21 October 1907, Page 10

LABOUR LEGISLATION.

THE IMPRISONMENT OF STRIKERS ' BRITISH COMMENTS ON THE NEW ./ZEALAND POSITION. .... ... Many of the British papers to hand this week contain comments upon the situation created-in New Zealand by.the Court of Ap r peal's decision that the non-payment of fines by strikers may be enforced by writ of attachment'.. ..■..j ..■.,...,.;.,...., In the ;opinion of:,the dian," the decision is" "sound logic as well as, presumably, sound law," becauso "unless the Arbitration Court is armed with power to ■ proceed' summarily its -efi^jiivonessjas-an.in/-; strument' for tho prevention of strikes' iScoh- , ' sidorably. limited.", ..of..the, Act," the. "Guardian"'continues, "maintain that in the case of a strike on.a largo.scalo jiude-. fianco of the law the imprisonment of a largo number of strikers would be impracticable j Flights of Fancy. v V j "No doubt it is possible, to'conceive instances in' which the number-of- -.offenders'' liable to punishment is greater than the gaol accommodation, but such flights of fancy' aro possible with regard to almost any law,- and yet it remains a fact that most laws aro not stultified.'.'becauso? makes up his mind to'break them. '.' Once you assume that powerful bodies of , workers or ' employers are resolved, invspite of all penalties, to .defy .the law, imposing compulsory ■'-.-. arbitration arid : to strike, or' lock-put; then; it 'tis no lorigor., worth. ,whilo. to,argue about the, relativo vahie of penalties; the law has broken down though it-, remains .on the statute-book. There is, "however;" practically , no evidence of such a state of mind among workmen or employers .£. . Of course thero is always , a •temptation vto men and'masters to take the law into their •own hands when a strike or a lock-out pro'niises ..more; than,, an. appeal courts, 'but this is precisely the sentiment of lawlessness which'law of every kind has to conquer, and, generally speaking, does conquer pretty effectually. It will be time to conclude that the compulsory submission of ,in- ,: ■ dustrial disputes ,to : ,the courts is T iri'6rel!inicrently alien''to hui«aii' I nature than the compulsory submission of disputes,lear]ing to i ordinary crime when much moro evidence to that effect has been accumulatedmtlian at •present exists." ' ._ • 'A One-sided Law. " ; The "Globe" has grave doubts, and after .. remarking that many H New. v.,em- "•, .ployers regard the incessant 'disputed as'rn'oro irksomo, and 'more productive, of loss, ...than strikes or lock-outs, continues i—"lu ; theory ■ ; the employer who Hock's his. men arid the< employee who strikes,' are both ■ liable either to fine or imprisonment. ..-is'ln '.practice', ,bnly.the employer has hitherto been penalised to any appreciable degree. Even the strenuous Government officials,, of.. New - Zealand,., may. well hesitate, before "they attbmp'tr to "collect lines from some hundreds of strikers, or failing ' that, to lodge them'safely in_ gaol for the crime of'refusing to work. It is easy enough to. reach the employer, and ruin him if he does not comply with the provisions of the law'; the workman is a more difficult bird to catehi and hitherto - he- has evaded—the snare." ' . . : ■ ■ ■, Controversy ..j Not Ended.' ■••;■-■'• ; ■.]' The "Pall , : Mall jCqUifet of Appeal jujrtgmentf jho;ugh^'tjie*fi^al ( %£age ! of a good deal;4Pilitigati'6ni''j;isi''iiot?-the'e_nd of the controversy, which the attempt to, introduce compulsory arbitration has aroused;" "The fact is," says the "Gazette,"' "that'the Labour party thought compiilsofy'«arbitration ■ would sound vjiry lyiU,^butf : was*, nof-'lpre-pared for its' logical'c'bh.§'ei(iiien'ceS^'' u AVorkmen wore; quite willing to have , , a lair-fbfFwhfch employers might be forced to accept '-iftc rates of wages, hours of work, 'and other con* , ditions imposed by an arbitration..cpurt,-.-andi they believed that they could keep such.fj.a-, court under:' influences:rfavoufablo ; :tOr them-;' selves. 'But,' they.have'gone;on;striking"; as iofore, and ; though;the "courts may decree' imprisonment, they have-still this advantago, that if a general striko were to occur and the men refused to : pay>'tho fines, the gaols . jif the colony would not be large. enough to 1 hold one-half of : the'delinquents. 1 New .Zealand's experiment-has. jjpt'.'yet reached the '-~ stage at which''it''cari" , be ; 'set up as 'a';model for the industrialisni.oLother countries.".',.. ' Ho Solution Yet. The '"Scotsman" devotes a very lengthy ieacling article to the subject, and takes a pessimistic view of tho If uture, ; holding ..that the, labour problem 'is';as;"far,? from ,'-Being solved as ever" in New Zealand. The intra-, duction of the Arbitration Act and this""Bill' is interpreted as "a confession that the existing system has ceased to work, 'with reasonable fairness and efficiency, as a means of settling tho-quarrels : between fem-j ployers and employee!."'..After. skdtetiing''the circumstances leading up to the Court of Ap- ; . peal judgment, the Edinburgh journal-thinks-that there is now a fresh issue, calling for new treatment, "for it-is obvious, on -the; one hand, that tho law cannot b'tf putin force against large masses" , of -'men '-who'; may choose to disregard an award and to coase work, and it should be equally plain that it cannot bo made operative against one side in a dispute and not against the other." The Economic View. . ■;'.,■ ■'■-~,., In'further analysis;.; of!\>the,»:melhods of working of the- ActjUiheN '•'ScofemaV ..puts forwam the standing argument that tho Act ■has, not Jjnies/rand--de- , - clares that:.' - .a^morelniaterial':lac'tUs : ;.tliat , r : it' i has not improved, • but has rather injured and complicated the relations.between capij. tal and labour;" "Everything-has bepn^lorie; V as of set purpose to foster uniqnisrij > orr.in'b ; * one hand'and trade combinations •-oniHvtfie; . other." Tlib result is>a raising and a shifting of the sumor—a system which, JJifehvtariff wall,.can trade is booming. , "A ditions come in , as soon as *a check, , and,-judgments which displease tho increased wages. and shorter hours. fcsfne problem of the enforcement of the decisions then conies to the front, as in the cass!of the Auckland slaughtermen. Tho industrial unions formed under the Act have no funds to speak of, and-can, readily.,be- dissolved.- .To put a body'of strikers in prisoii for" refusing to work on terms they are not disposed 'to accept is a strong order, even for a Colonial Legislature..'.-.'. „ .... ~ . / . , A Selfish Attitude. "Unionists insist upon looking at the question from its own selfish point of view. A law is good only when it favours them at others' expense. Imprtsotimont~for''fnoli-pay-. ■ ment of fine, just and. irictitoridus, ifi applied to tho employer of labour, becomes a 'dis- . grace , when applied to the labourer/- ■■Thor New Zealand Government measure , .'-is- bp : .' posed in tho same spirit, and 'passive resist; ance , is urged should it become Jaw. This attitude of Trade Unionism to compulsory arbitration in New Zealand is-the more curious, when it is remembered that it has dc- . clared against the principle in this country ..-. and Jn America. Aside altogether from '' trade union interests;, thje Jsy.sjen}.. .can bo shown to be :bn sound political Sand 'economic Mr. Douglas Knoop has written, under.' it wages tend to become a political and party question; a strike to take ...a, mutiny against the State; , changes'" of' Government to resolve themselves into a. personal or trade .problcm.,of;-bread and^bitter,;, and discontent to "concentrate itself "against itia law —unless the law is willing always to take sides. These propositions are beginning to find practical illustration .in ..New Zealand." ■ ' "•""■