FACTORY WORKERS.

Hawera & Normanby Star, Volume LXIX, Issue LXIX, 24 May 1915, Page 6

FACTORY WORKERS.

To the Editor. Sir, —Seeing that the season has closed for the poorly-paid factory hand, and as we are not blessed with a union like tradesmen and farmers themselves to bring our grievances before those in authority in the usual way, I should like to make a suggestion through the columns of your valued paper to the directors of the numerous cheese factories around Hawera. Firstly, I suggest they favorably consider paying a bonvis to the men, at least to those who intend siicking to the game and come back next season. My reasons are that we have been xmderpaid for ordinary seasons, and this being an extraordinary one for prices, and the cost of living going up (both owing to the war) it would onjy be a fair deal. The farmers are reaping a harvest, and the cheesemakers are worse off than ever. Secondly, I suggest that we be paid a fair wage, which I think would be at least 10s a week rise all round. The farmers themselves, and the directors, too (individually) admit that we are not treated right, but collectively they will not move in that direction, and, as I said before, we have no union to enforce our demands. Treatment such as we would get under the Arbitration Act -would suit us admirably, for I am sure that none Of us harbor revolutionary ideas As in other walks of life, maybe an odd farmer may say, "Get out of it, if you're not satisfied." Well, that does not get over the difficulty; and, take the farmers themselves, very few but are complaining about *the weather, their tost, or tne rent* etc., etc. Do they get out of it? I hope that some factory will take the ]c?ad in this direction, and the others will follow

FACTORY HAND