CAPITAL AND LABOUR

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 229, 22 June 1920, Page 6

CAPITAL AND LABOUR

IRRECONCILABLE VIEWS

WHY EMPLOYERS REFUSED

CONFERENCE

Preferences to the recent meeting of tho Employers' Association and the decision niado there against the Wolfare League's proposal for a conference ot representatives of employers and workel's with a view of improved relations botween these two groups, were niade at the meeting of the Industrial Association last night. Mr. H. Mainland Baid that the employers had been quite vigorously "slated" in the Press for their decision not to take part in any such conference, but anyone at tho meeting, after hearing what was being done by individual employers in dealing with employees, and after hearing also the very full discussion of the proposal, could not havo come to' any other decision. It was made quite 'clear that there wero few parts of the world in which moro was being done for labour than New Zealand had done. New Zealand had doue many things to alleviate 'the burden of workers, and the worker in this country had benefits which those in other lands' lacked. He thought the Etaptbycrs' Association was doing good work.

Mr. C. J. Ward said that at the meeting Mr. D. M'Laren had given an address making many references to "basic principles," but Mr. M'Laren made no attempt to define these _ principles. There was nothing definite in his proposals at all. It was an address from people outside tho movement to those on the inside, who knew what they were doing. It was quite wrong 1o suggest that tho decision of the meeting was hasty. Whether it was wiso or unwise, there' was no doubt that it had been well considered. The main point which had influenced the decision was I that the leaders of the Labour movement had declared that their aim was to do away with employers and to control industries for Labour's own benefit. It was felt that while this was their opinion nothing could be done to meet them. It was known to employers that after all tho discussion and meetings in other parts of the world there was still turmoil, and nothing definite had come out of all the discussion. Nothing more was being done anywhere than was being dono by individual employers in New Zealand, whether _ by welfare committees or by committees with some other name. It was known to employers that the Labour' movement hero was just as. much opposed to welfare work and. the uplift movement as to employors generally. A prominent Labour man had said to him: "Men like yon are a menace to the Labour movement. You create difficulties for ns with tho men. We want to make industry so unprofitable that you will give it up and leave it to us." Mr. Ward said that his own opinion was that employers could do nothing more by a large conference than they were now doing individually or through collective settlements in the Arbitration Court. A conference would jhean columns of print with no good result.