THE COALOWNER'S PLEA

Grey River Argus, 15 May 1912, Page 8

THE COALOWNER'S PLEA

"DWINDLING MINORITY'S'" ATTITUDE.

(By D. A. Thomas iv the Daily Mai.

Mr D. A. Thomas, the writer of this article, is the leading figu'"<> in dig present coal dispute. He has been, called the Napoleon ol the Welsh coalfield, and is head of the Cambrian "Combine," which .starred, in 1908 with a capital, of £120,606. It's capital torday i$ 42^235,000, it employs over ]500(ji workers, and produces over . 4,'COO.OOO tons of coal 'a year. i,lv. Thomas has fought vigorous' ly throughput . against the. priu» ciiile_ of, the .minimum • wagp, his contention being-, that the 'men arebound -by ■ an agreenie-nt >Vhich nas still some ypaj'sr-o, runMr. Thomas r -.s,a^t. as ; . a Lib.eraV member fp ( r, , Merjh.^r. Tydyi^ f rom. 1888 to 1910, and for a short tim« as member for Cardiff, Mr. Gladstone once paid him --the tribute of saying that as an authority on these matters there. >>vas no one to . sui^ass him in the House. Cortainl yno organisation of erQplovers such as th© South Wales Coalowners' ■ Association ; can, fi-gh't effectually against an Act of Parliament, and if the Qoviernm'one ■e.^&rcises this "force majeure," we shall be compelled vo submit, but" we shall do so with the greatest 'reluctance. We certainly shall not voluntarily agree to tb-e Government proposals, as already submitted. EFFECT OF USING .COMPULSION/ The proposals of the Government cannot fail ta be regarded as of the most far-reaching, not tosay revolutionaay, character.' They concede absolutely the guaVanteed individual minimum wa*ge to underaround workmen. If these Government proposals are to be enforced, as lVas been sug--gesved, by legal enactment upon any dissentients, it means that the Government are compelling the South Wales roaiowners to agree to a breach of an agreement soleomlv entered into with-, in the last two years by the representatives of the workmen and, themselves. To pass an Act of Parliament forcing the South Walos coalowners to set aside this agreement goes to the root of collective bargaining, which is really th.» basis of Trade Unionism. The moral effect of such a course iipon the communiity of. such Government action can hardly fail to be weakening. Then the Bill must provide, if.it 'is 10 .give effect to the Government proposals, for State regulation of wages in the coal trade, the -workers in which arc among the most highly paid in the country. Nobod /yean suppose for a moment that the policy or principle will stop, there. Within the coarse of a very short we shall Have every other industry claiming to be similarly treated. The fourth proposal of the Government provides for compulsory arbitration, but it will be observed that tlWe is no provision of any kind so far for the enforcement of an award \yhen it has been made.