TRADES AND LABOUR COUNCIL.

Lyttelton Times, Volume CVIII, Issue 12933, 29 September 1902, Page 2

TRADES AND LABOUR COUNCIL.

The Canterbury Trades and Labour Council met in the ‘Trades Hall on Saturday evening, the President in the chair. New delegates wore welcomed from the Brickmakers’ and Painters’ Unions. The Chairman. in opening the meeting, introduced Mr S. Borcham, of the Waimate Workers’ Union, and Mr M’Harg, of the Canterbury Shearers’ Union, whowere present at tho invitation of the executive. Correspondence was received! from the Waimate Workers’ Union, Canterbury Shearers’ Union and Traction Engine-drivers’ and Firemen’s Unions, expressing their approval of the efforts to organise the agricultural and pastoral workers, and emphasising the necessity of united and energetic action., Mr Boreham gave a lengthy and interesting address on the country workers, who, he said, were badly treated, 'it being not unusual for lads of seventeen or eighteen to drive a team of six horses in a double-furrow plough for from: six to twelve shillings a) week. In answering questions, Mr Boreham stated! that the country workers of Canterbury numbered about seven or eight thousand,, lof which number about 1100 were organised. After an exhaustive discussion, it was decided to writ© to the. three Unions mentioned, and ask them to jointly recommend to the Council an organiser to organise the whole of the country workers in the district, and to state what amount they could guarantee towards his support. A hearty' vote of thanks was accorded to the visitors. Correspondence from the Dunedin Council, containing a proposal for a New Zealand organiser, was received, and the .scheme approved and forwarded to the Unions affiliated. Mr W. Rollitt, Mayor of Sumner, wrote stating his intention to contest the Lyttelton seat in the Liberal interest at the forthcoming election. The executive reported having carefully considered the report of the Canal Conference, and recommended that the proposal • for the construction of a canal to Christchurch was premature, the outlay being too great for the present population/ It • disapproved of any sum of money being spent in extensive surveys either for the canal or for the Gollan’s Bay tunnel, (but advocated improved facilities for communication between Christchurch, and Lyttelton. The matter, of a Trades Hall was being pushed forward. The local members of Parliament had been approached with a view of procuring Government assistance, and it was intended to write to Mr Tanner to press the question of placing an amount on the Estimates so that the House should vote on the proposal. The committee Submitted the result of the appeal to the Unions as to whether they were in favour of running candidates at the coming election, and expressed regret at the apathy shown by some of the Unions, who had not replied. The Council decided that ns eleven Unions were in favour of the proposal, /being a majority of those replying, three candidates should be run, and that Unions should be asked to nominate candidates, one condition to be that either unionist or nonunionist may be accepted, providing they would pledge themselves not to test the election if they were not chosen at the final ballot. . . ■ ■