WILL N.Z. LABOUR BREAK AWAY FROM W.F.T.U. ?

Grey River Argus, 18 February 1949, Page 5

WILL N.Z. LABOUR BREAK AWAY FROM W.F.T.U. ?

P.A. ' WELLINGTON, Feb. ~17 a decision whether the New Zealand Federation of Labour will remain affiliated to the World Federation of Trade Unions was referred, to-day by the National Council of the Federation of Labour, to the annual conference of tne Federation, to be held in Wellington in May.

The secretary, Mr K. MelBaxter, said that, pending the decision of the conference-, no further affiliation fees would be paid to the World Federation.

He said that the Council had instructed, also, that the secretary circulate t 0... the affiliations a statement containing information on the events which led up to the cleavage in the World Federation, which had resulted m large sections withdrawing their affiliation from the World Federation. The New Zealand Council received from Mr Albert Monk, the representative of Australia and New Zealand on the Executive Council of the World Federation of Trade Union a cabled message dated Paris, February 13, in which he said that, at the Paris meeting of the World Federation, he had abstained from voting on the question of the continuance of the W.F.T.U., and he had stated that he couid not commit Australia and New Zealand. Mr Monk stated that the annual congress of the W.F.T.U. would be held at Milan in June, but there was no hope of the British Trade Union movement reconsidering its decision to withdraw from the federation.

Mr Monk said that all of the executive positions of the W.F.T.U., both those of the officers and of the' paid executives, were now held by Communists, and the organisation would be entirely Communist controlled