ORGANISED UNIONISM.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 4329, 31 August 1937, Page 1

ORGANISED UNIONISM.

DICTATING LABOUR’S POLICY'. ‘‘SOCIAL EXPERIMENTAL STUPE.” NATIONALS CLAIM WORKERS’ SUPPORT. The extreme class legislation of the Labour Government was dictated not by the working men but by organised unionism, declared the Hon. Adam Hamilton, Leader of the National Party, at Palmerston recently. Ministers, he pointed out, were now appealing for co-operation and goodwill between employer and employee, yet they had always preached class hatred. “We have in office to-day extremists who have expressed extremist views all their lives,” said Mr Hamilton. “They do not stand for co-opera-tion and well-being between employer and worker. They say the capitalist system is wrong, and when they had the opportunity of putting their views into practice they introduced class legislation.” What was the driving force behind the Labour Government? The power behind it and dictating the policy was the Trades and Labour Council, the Alliance of Labour, and, now, the big Federation of Labour, Many farmers voted for Labour, which offered something to please them, but when Mr Savage returned to New Zealand Mr Welsh, the secre tary of the Seamen’s Union, told him:—‘We have been working while you were away, and we are nearly up to 200,000 strong. That was Die power which was going to keep, La-

hour in office. Ministers were pleading for co-operation and goodwill, but tliey bad never preached that before in all their lives. They had preached hatred. Labour gained office through the Coalition’s folly. The setting should be correctly arranged for the next election, with the straight-out issue National v. Labour, and he would be surprised if the Nationalists' did not •win. ‘W© went Into the fight Last time with one leg tied, one band tied at our back, and one eye closed. We don’t want that to happen again. There is no good wasting time and money, unless the setting is right. There will be no Democrat Party next time, as it has gone out of existence.” Organised unionism, not the workers, was represented by Labour’. Not all the workers voted for Labour, as nobody could look better after their interests' than the National Party. The Hon. H. T. Armstrong said, when in the United States, that the standard of living in New Zealand was the highest in the world; the best wages and conditions were operative before Labour gained office, the working man knew. He also knew that, unless industries were kept going and the farmers and business men were safe and sound also, his job was in | jeopardy. i “The worker will vote for us, and ' vm will legislate for him. We can j look after his interests as well as anybody else, and the number of i working men who are joining our ! party daily is marvellous. They know i it, is better to have constitutional | sound, and safe government than the 1 social experimental stuff, of Labour.”