NOTES AND COMMENTS ON LABOUR QUESTIONS.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 12868, 17 May 1905, Page 1 (Supplement)

NOTES AND COMMENTS ON LABOUR QUESTIONS.

[BY ARTISAN".] -;.;: IJj;. Akeo writes in Plain Truth that at lias never seen a tramp in Switzerland, the reason being that, as in Germany, tho ''relief station" is a recognised institution. These stations aie found at intervals of jt ; about ten miles on the main roads, ami there the genuine unemployed can have food ami lodging. Lancashire cotton operatives are to have -i lheir wages increased by 5 per cent., from ihu second Saturday in July, and' a further increase of 2$ pet cent, is to be considered! :! in January. The operatives had asked for 'y, •i.ii advance of 7£ per cent., raising them , in actual list prices without deductions. ■ ; This would represent from. Is 6d to 2s per; -,\ week <\n the average weaver's- wage. Allowing lawyers to appear in the ArbiiiutK.yi (.'nun has proved a great- drain on j the- bands of the New youth Wales union*,, whlc'Ji have placed their cases, before tho Court. For instance, lie - Trolley, Draymen, . • '-; wy'l Carte).-' Union has paid away nearly,' \ ■ £.00 in legal fees, etc.. avid it has cost ' .The Cullieiy Fmplowe- Federation a big ' ;:'"'! proportion of the £4000 odd decrease iiij '- $ their funds for legal expenses. % : '>-i | In order to assist some of the numerous '■■','."' unemployed in New South Wales, the State Cove.vnment- is sending out- four gangs (if />-; .■{ 12 .men each, fully equipped, to the rabbit- \■■. "% 1 infested districts, for the purpose of trap-; ,••■£, ping bunny. The men will receive 3d per pair for- all rabbits caught by them, pay-' ;j mem to In- made each • day. This is an ■-~.. ■•-'-,> - - --'"i experiment, ami if it proves successful *>.. • 200 or 300 men will be sent out to wage SM war on bunny. •' ,- , : ■'" Miners in the southern coal districts of* Xeiv South Wales aie having a, .hard timei it!', ii owing to slackness of work: Over 100 employees from the Woonoua- mine are unemployed, many of them having ravelled •--, all over the district- vainly seeking work. - Some have obtained employment at sleeper* : cutting, and otheis have gone to Btirragoraiij; silver mines in quest of work.' The film of £100 voted by the. union as distress relief was distributed amongst (A miners ami -'«?; their lamilies.- "^ To light tin' strike of lhe .shipyard black- - ■ smiths in ounderland. which has lasted over tihtee months, the employers have been im- , Sporting free labour from Loudon, Manches- . v' ter, Glasgow'", and Liverpool. These, are, Ji : in many cases, housed and fed within the/' '■; ' shipyaid premises. Some firms are advanc- ; ■;-.» I ing money and building cottages to enable "'& I the men to bring their families.' It is de- .': dated that the imported workers "will : not '.. ;s.;f-| ho displaced, even though the local smiths'. . '-/:; give up-the st niggle. ■■'- ■;' Wlieu the Unemployed Workmen's Bill was introduced in the House of Commons recently, it was stated that it- would he. applicable to Loudon only, and not- mad »'- compulsory in the provinces. The General federation of Tiade.Union takes exception. to this, and urges that it- should lie made compulsory in the provinces as well as iir; London, also that there should be-.a- larger.: . expenditure noon the pioject than the Government proposes, and that payment of . wages should be ar the rales current in the. '.-' ■' various districts * ..-■*■ After breaking the strike of 6000 employ-. I ee's of the elevated railway and twopenny | tubes of New York. Farley's army of pro- '*' fessional strike breakeis was paid off. Hig employers throughout, the count ; provide . employment for the professional ike • : breakers until their services are. required ■>* in the settlement of some other dispute. ..' '"•:'. Farley's powerful organisation is as cunfpletely equipped as any army corps, and is much hated by unionists, lie ha* splarg<> executive staff, all highly paid. For breaking a strike, Farley* himself receives a iixed aunt, according to contract. As regards New York, lie s.'.id that sia-t-e-s was assured-. ,;.''„'.l ; 4f from the .Jutk-f, bet '.in*? ■ the-"strikers had ti hud case, and. lacked public ' sympathy. Despite the many new hands, the* running of the elevated and (lie tubes has become -, , • almost normal. The old employees taken S back have lost seniority, and begun, work .'' ■again at the bottom of" die ladder. ;.i The second annual conference ,of the Amalgamated (•tayeruiiieni ;Railway. and'_ Tramway Service Associations of the Com- ' inonweahh was held at Sydney on April 21' and 22, till the States being represented. -, The constitution of the Federation was adopted, and it was decided to register under thg Federal Arbitral ion Act at once. ' Amou*othcr resolutions curried were those >,' urging that'full citizens' rights (Parliamentary and municipal) he extended to' all' State railway and tramway employees, and that existing disabilities be removed 'by ;' legislation; full .pay when capacitated £i from work.vcompulsoiy system of indenture s . ■ of apprentices, systematic organisation of each' State, objection to compulsory insurance, the establishment of a superannuation fund: that: 48 hours be the maximum for a weeks work: inter-State '"privilege tic- , kets" for all State railway and tramway employees in the Commonwealth ; that a '; minimum wage of 7,s per day for, adults be affirmed by statute: that eyesight and hearing tests be confined to practical tests. The U.S.A. Labour Federations' Con- _ : ? gress dcitvmded the exclusion of the Japan- .'" ' ese to be enrolled on the statute book along-' side that which shuts out the Chinese. In;. 1898 the Japanese immigrants to the* United' • States numbered only 2000; in 1903 just . \ 19,968 went in. The Chinese and Japanese ;.* have already almost crowded white labour out of Hawaii, and American industrial authorities declare that, were it not for the : ;H Chinese, exclusion laws, the wages' of coal- ..'4'miuers in Pennsylvania and elsewhere would < now be so low that only, coolies would 'bd '~'. employed. The labour trusts of Japan furnish'the Japanese coolie with the 30 dol- .> lars in gold required to be shown at the port of entry by the U.S.A.'s immigration ' Jaws, and take it away from him as soon ' ' as he has passed. In Japan the wages per ;; day are: For carpenters, 15d : for plasterers, 1 15d ; for printers. 9£d: for blacksmiths, 18d: and for farm hands, 5 6d per month, -• -■■" ) without board! Consequently, the Japanese are glad to work in America for 2s 6d and 3s per day. -.t There is little altera (ion to be observed) in the local labour market. The building trade keeps fairly busy, with few men olid •/ of employment for any length of lime. The. clothing trad.-s have been rather slack, buff arc now undergoing a slight spurt, which may or may not last. Most of the factories had occasion recently to .shorten hands temporarily, but all are now re-engaged. The ."'."•.-' boot trade shows some improvement, all ■-? the members of the union being work. The improvement is accounted for by the ' fact that the heavy importations of Ameri- ' can goods oil the parsing of the preferential .. tariff have now been worked off, conse- " ; quently the. local goods are more, in demand. Tailoring, as usual for the winter mouths, is quiet, and short time is being made by most of the ■workers in. this trade. Engineering and allied trades are fair. Work has been plentiful on the wharves of late, fair time being made by a number of those who follow this class of employment, but there is always a surplus o? - labour offering for this work, and the majority have to bo content will but little. Local unions are very much perturbed over the recent decision of tho Arbitration Court re the method of taking tho ballot] to confirm the resolution of the unions in. open meeting to take proceedings under the Act. It is thought that the Court should! have pointed out this defect when cases, were first submitted under the clause in question, which would have prevented the confusion now entailed. It is a. matter of surprise that those wfvt aspire to pose as " labour barristers" should not have found out their error in the construction of their reading of the clause in question before. It ' is thought by some that the decision of the ;TK Court is likely to affect some of tho awards already in force, and probably lead to some confusion. Though the unions affected feelsore, the veiled threat that they were likely to cancel their registration and go out ore strike is quite, out of the question. The unions of Auckland are prepared to acoeph »- and loyally abide by the decisions of Tho Court, whether the decision is for or againsb them. Several of the unions affected are* ;■ now taking active steps to rectify the blunder made, and their eases will be riled iu >-iudei. The decision has considerably! shortened the work of Ibo Court in Auck '"' land at- the present sittings,, but will Jp»l*#ff| . . u» for future sitting " * r , r^Mlinin= 3 T !3a3^^fff^

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