THE FIGHT TO A FINISH.

Dominion, Volume 3, Issue 752, 26 February 1910, Page 13

THE FIGHT TO A FINISH.

I CABEy IN'-BEPLY.,'.' .',." ..'l'- .[To.th'e/EditorJ,. . '-~ . \:_ Sir,—When, a week ago, in explaining to your reporter the position of the hotel employees' dispute, arising ont of the abortive, conference .between representa.tives of the. Hotel /Employees' Federation and representatives of the /Now. Zealand Licensed- .Victuallers' 'Associations, I stated that: "It was now a fight to a finish." I; did not anticipate , that the "fighf,' would develop, : into an [ unseemly sort of;:"your'ro another" , kind of wrangle in the , columns of The, Dominion. I,expected that as Mr. Palmer ■ had so definitely laid down' at , the' conference,, the ultimatumW-"Tho' old award or nothing,"; that' he: and the\.Trade would have, been content. to" make the Arbitration Court the' : battle ground. That'he.or the hotelkeepers' advocate/'would there fight." out at least the following contentions of the Employees' ..'Federation rr' , .-- ■/'.,' "/- ;.'

-.'. (1) • That tho ■ shorter. hours . and' extra holidays ' legalised 1 by. .Statute -in the various Australian States, if /possible of observance 'by thoro, ■ are most assuredly equally possible of general application in New, Zealand. , (2>.That. tho maximum of 2 : hours per week prescribed for the-majority of workers is in even the ."sixpenny-/restaurant by bur Shops and Officos,: Act, might in all equity -be. oxtended to' workers in hotels, now .enduring a $5 hours'; working.-. : week; and (3) that before soliciting the support J of the/general ', mass -of workers :at ■ election time, Mr.'-Palmer '■ and all othor hotel; employers should at least bo; prepared to grant fair and.reasonable labour conditions to their/own particular.employees;--,.'.,,-,'-;:,'.-,.''.-.--,-'-.;,.■/ -;.-v, ;.,. -,■■'■, : . :/I: have,'neither, the'.time nbrVthV. inclination to bandy words ..'with Mr. Palmer/'.Nor', do, I expect that you will permit of/your cblumnsbeing used :to perpetuate;,a :cbntroversv/ as -to/.whether or/not Mr.-.Palmer- it ■'■i am responsible for the present position/ of -the' , .dispute m/the trade. I claim, however, the privilege of Bpace sufficient enough- to "answer the string/of personalities and equivocations, indulged in.by' Mr. ; Palmer injhis letter in ;to-day'a Doimnos.' ' ', /~. "First, , as to the demands: made: by tho federation. The.referonce will be fifed in the course of : 'a few", days tat: the outset,' and a.'legally constituted Council of Cbn:ciliation irill then be setup to deal'witK the demands of; the 'local union)..which are, in- effect,'/the'demands of the .federation.; I again repeat that if there'is any ..sincerity vin /Mr.: Palmer's- suave professions/of the -.-.Trade's'- desire- to grant .the reasonable'demands of its .: employees, ample.' opportunity'■ to .give; effect,to /that desire will be.afforded on the, Council pf . Conciliatiqn.; .As: to. the. -fairness, or otherwise/of, tho ; demands, they will -bo publio; property, shortly, -and /...the ■ employees whom.. I■• represent are . satisfied that ;the public atlarge shall -judgo as to their yments. ;•, ■-, ;. -.. .■•■■■..■ .-.:••. „.;./;:

In ; . reference .to" the excerpts' from a former .'.report;.- of; the;. 'New.■ Zealand Licensed , Victuallers' •'. Association, ■ deal- : !?8, :71th that ■' body's . attitude to organised labour,, Mr. Palmer denies all. knowledge of the report-prior.to its presentation, at tne annual .meeting of tho association. 'Possibly he-is literally : right in that statement.;:. But.will-he deny that he , was an executive; officer,of the 'association at■;the. time.:of the, presentation■ 'of the report,- that the --report -was' adopted by..the meetmg^that'he-was present 1 at thejiathering. and .that the- excerpts'nro anything -extracts .from -. %a«CMr.• Palmer's explanation of .his' ■ •«. ■ \i-1 term "Wasters"; in, connection )"th -hotelsworkers;; -The report of the Labcmr °BillS°Xom■imttee, .when-laid: before the House,' wiU .'ao^.just-vin/v'what-.sense Mr..-Palmer applied^the : word.v'. Whether he applied it : to: the. employees, in hotels generally, pr,-aa he explains, Vonly. to; a action "of - B^ mt th^ a -designation I comoa-with grace ■ from--;Mr., .Palmer, -jhov.isithe: :■• month: piece-.of the, Trade,:wh?ch fattens on tho i -salq ,of-the very/stuff,whrch.'Tn almost.^i'?? 563 !, 13 .^ o ' , : 11 workers.descend-- ' £■■♦ to ii^ a^ ■'eocial-istate.Vand -becoming ; : nhatv:Mr, Palmer ,is\pleased to idescribo •$ i -i? ast ;?' ''wotipii - of' hotel 'eimaoieea l ;Neither : Mr, Aimer nor:: iSii! , ates.vto,.Bpendw;money- lavishly, on when; it. suits the purpose at'i pat,with af; that: to fe^;«>e- ; Trade, .most -critical | LiJce the .annual report, -the. esuressiDii wa 3i meant^-.to', reach tluTrnSfS "° r ma r n {;' on - d ;^ther: a-wara..; of.22s. ; 6d. perweekis a living .wageJor. a-married tn°V iT^! t f T - ?almer todeavours to . the-cliallenge, -and repUes that,. °ft a!l < '' m ?* 1 5 i »ifrt' in trade: .proyide,-.fw,a '.OS/hours , . week, "my exthe. working of those awards is that the exact time the average hotel employee actnaUyVorks,is kot;.moro than ■to vper .cent.' of , . thoV majdmum time m 1 ,?.. aipeed unon in the Eeveral agree--ments. :y .Ifsuch is the, ; case,: apart from' the challenge, >why.did"not Mr.-Palmer and;the other hotelteepers present'at the , conference last' week agree , 'to a reduction '? pe'K.hours , . of the old/award? IM it to'-Mr. Palmer again, to" test-his profession of .reasonableness,': if, ? as he says' only 25 per cent; of; the maximum , ;hours provided are. aotually-wqrked.'whynbt ■agree -straight ■ away to a • reduction' of hours?;.;- Mr.'.Hally, Industrial 1 Coininis. ■sioner, ~may '.possibly- put the'same proposition. ;At all events, 'as- stated; the Trade -will :have its /opportunity' at' the Concihatioh: Council. • The union wants nothing..like• what Mr..Palmer's experience teachos him are the average actual working ■ hours of. hotel-employees. In-' etead. of; working, as he states, -not/more than .25.:,' pe r :, cent, of', the . maximum of 65 hours allowed, hotel employees through ■the..local-,union, now ask for a general; 10 or 11 -per cent.■ only reduction. -The. demands put sought, for a. 56 and 52 week •■'for'- males--and females respectively! - Meantime,-till- the Conciliation-''.'Council, sits, I,' leave', it to your; readers, to believe that: hotelkeepers as. a class in' New; Zealand are generous enough 'to .: allow .-.tlioir-; employees to. actually work "not iriiire than 25 per cent, of : tho.: maximum 651 hours - prescribed.": The Labour. Department officials could shed some light.on.the subject,-and prove whether or not the! averago hotelkcoper does, not:insist ionvhia-"pound, of flosh.". ; And. as ;to itho;, second part of ' the challenge, ro tho 225. Gd.. , per "week of '65.,h0ur5., for. tho married (hotel, worker, Mr. Palmer ...answers:—"Who is. . he? Wlierq do wo find him?".. The-: Wellington award fixes a minimum of ,225. G5.; per weelc for kitchenmen, andas low asiEl a weolc.for general hands. Ask any: union, secretary,; ask Mr. Wilks, of the Charitable Aid Board, if at times married, men would be thankful to work at considerably .loss than even the minimum, award wage in any industry. '■ According to Mr: Palmer tho living wage principle is not involved in hotol- workers' "conditions, because board and- lodging is, provided. Liko many of his class, Mr. Palmer would have "marriago a luxury" for tho workers, and so construe the living wage principle as to give hotelkeepers tho special privilege of running their establishments with tho labour of single workers only. '■ What matter, to the hotolkcoper if his worker ■is forced to a life'of. celibacy, provided the award wago of £X and 225. Gd. for Cs'hours is allowed' to continuo in : existence ? - '..' -

'. Rnally, in answer to Mr. .Palmer's inuendos and insinuations against myself, I did not expect oven that Mr. Palmer would descend to such scurrility. Perhaps it- is tlvo publichoiise environment: that >is to blame. To answer him lot mo quotehis puerile remarks in reference to myself: "If hoi(Carey) were to take the-em-ployees into his\. confidence, and tell them just how. lhuoh he makes out of. the business, the salaries and pickings ho receives as secretary .of."this and that I union, etc.; together with the travelling allowances-he draws, the style in which he'travels,, the, employees.- themselves might begin-.to/appreciate -the 'disinteposted' (?). services oh their, behalf at their ,true worth." . . '

■ It comes well from Mr. . Palmer... My friends advise me to ichoro,- it. Perhaps I should,, but Jet. mo-tell Mr. Palmer the pmployees are in my confidence, and I in theirs;, 1 that' my.'travelling allowances would surprise him in their small total; that tho stylo in-which I travel is, and has always been^-"second .class,-';and that .'I have twice' refused an.incfease in "Jury from my union. I am an agitator,

and in conclusion, this to ■Hγ. Palmer-and the Trade, I intend to agitato till hotel employees in New Zealand secure by awards and legislation and by the weight of public opinion,; something out of the profits of the monopoly of. the salo of beer, in the' direction of shorter hours, more holidays, increased wages, and better conditions generally. When; I- have accomplished that, there will be no need of the insidious advice of certain hotelkeepers, to their employees /to ■'■■ "sack Carey;" TO then rest from my labours as a^union' secretary, which are not. quitei 60 sweet and: profitable as'llr. Palmar sneeringly insinuates.—l am, etc.,

;.-..:, /. ... E. J. CARET, '-'.:•. / ■. ■ - . / ■; . Secretary, Wellington Cooks' and Waiters' TJnioh; February .24/ 1910. /■ '/ v .■[-■■ .//