THE WORLD OF WORK

New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 6179, 10 April 1907, Page 5

THE WORLD OF WORK

NOTES ON LABOUR irniHS AT HOME AND ABROAD, (Conducted by “Honestas.") fSocretarie© of Trader U'nioa« and Trades and Labour Councils are requested to forward for publication in this column items of interest to wugo-earnoi'S generally and trades unionists in particular.! Our annual Trades and Labour Conference, used to bo a medium whereby the workers' representatives, selected I rojn various Trades and Labour Conn* ribs, gave expression to their concurvouco in tho Government's proposed legislation, and their gratilicaiion lur favours received, ilv a combination of circauishiuccs such strong supporters of tho Government as Messrs Collins, Naughtcm, Uosscr. Barr and others were absent and the ''rebels," having the monopoly of tho speaking power, .-et IheiU-selves to at ouco dominate tho gathering and no opportunity ol having it slap at the Government was loot. Ilaiu tilings were said about the Government, some of which were without any apparent reason—unless certain delegates at Uie Conference woro chagrined at find; iug themselves absent from tho recent list of appointments to the Upper House. Mr MacLarcn was most outstanding figure of this year s conference. Mr Hampton played a good second fiddle, though the harmony oi us music was seriously interrupted by las discordant undemocratic action in movin'. the substitution ol councils'' for "unions*' in Mr J. K. Johnson’s motion to invite tho various Trades Unions of Uio colony to forward -’ggojdions * ol ' rho revising of the tariff. Mr Me-rrr loa’a distrust of iuc and file was further emphasised by Ins moving the "previous question" in order to defeat Mr Jack McCullough's very sensible motion urging tho conference to consider the advisability of allowing affiliated unions an opportunity of being dirccay represented at the annual conference, Tho effect of the teaching of tho Socialistic propagandist is evident in tho declaration of the committee of the Conference on Arbitration declaring the ,\cl to bo “not even a partial solution" of tho economic question, but that they have failed to grasp the true "economic basis" of the Socialist is evident from the remarks about the Court obtaining power to "adjudicate on matlors of interest, rout and profit." at the same time “ns it deals with wages!" To declare that tho Act is “not even a partial solution" of tho economic question. and then advise the workers to “adhere to tho Act" in tho “hope" of it “being improved upon . . until the economic basis of society is altcrou shows something worse than a want of vourage.

The Queensland Government have d(s cidotl that in all future Government contracts the hours of labour and ivages paid to workmen employed in the metropolitan area must bo forty-four hours per week at union rates. On contracts outside the metropolis, and where there is no union, the hours of labour and wages must be those current in the district. No sub-letting of contracts to 100 allowed without the sanction of the Minister.

The Arbitration Court is at present In Auckland. At the end of the week it will visit Huntly. Ngaruawnhia, Hamilton and Waihi. The Court expects to reach Waihi by Monday (15th inst.) to take up the miners' dispute. It will then proceed to the Thames and return to Auckland.

During the hearing in the New South Wales Arbitration Court of the dispute between the Firemen and Deck Hands' Association and Sydney Ferries Limited, the President, Judge Jioydou, said that /me of the features of arbitration was that, while there wore the doors’ of three Courts ,to knock at, the employ »• s took the full opportunity given, but the employees were content with knocking at one door. The result was that the masters had had it all their own way, going on until they got a favourable result. He know of only one case—cue Sydney Ferries dispute—where the iecisiou of the Arbitration Court had I een sustained. Several decisions had been sustained by the s-'-->vnie Court, but uot by the High Court.

Since Mr J. T. M. Hornsby was appointed organiser of the A.S.R.S., he has visited almost every railway centre in the colony. Some opposition papers have accused him of jaunting about the country at the expense of the union. To this Mr Hornsby replies that he has not had one single penny of travelling expenses from the union. It would seem from his speeches and writings in the “Railway Review/' that the railway men are not just as contented as they appear to outsiders. Mr Hornsby says they have numerous grievances crying for* redress, injustices, great and small, requiring to be dealt with. He says the society now numbers close on 6000equal to about 24,000 votes at an election. Such a sceptre would have a magical effect on the Minister in charge. All reasonable complaints would be adjusted, improvements in conditions of work effected, and the men given that position to which they were entitled. His investigations into the service had ■shown him some of the things that were done, and others that were left undone, but he was confident that when members of Parliament were made acquainted with the actual condition of things a better system than at present obtains vould be ordered.

Labour candidates are being run for ununicipal seats in Auckland, Christchurch, and Dunedin, as well as in Wellington. It will be interesting to mark the votes cast for Labour in the various centres and their proportion to the total poll. So far as election campaigning goes Auckland, from Press reports, \eems to bo putting up the best fight.

The Macbeth-Evans Glass Company* having its headquarters in the city of Pittsburg. Pa., and factories in Charleroi, Pittsburg, and also in Toledo, 0., nnd at Clarion and Khvood, Ind., has declared an "open shop" war on the American Flint Glass Workers' Union, and has locked out eleven hundred of its members.

Mr Trogear returns this week from Wnipu, where ho went to be present at the conference of delegates from the various branches of the _ Gumdiggers' Union, whore a scries of important resolutions was passed concerning the gum industry. The resolutions were characterised* by much moderation, and were -moved and supported in speeches exceedingly temperate in tone, especially when wo remember that this large body M workers has fretted under serious grievances for years. The resolutions wore placed before Mr Tregear for the Hie consideration of the Government. It Is to be hoped the Government will be able to do something to ameliorate the conditions under which the Gumdigger mow works. In Adelaide the Government Labour Bureau is said to be visited daily by a Jarge crowd of able-bodied, willing men waiting on the chance of a job. This—end a Labour Government in power in bmth Australia! "Cable" writes wanting to know how many "annual" ‘iiferences any body hold in a year, lie says: "Two months or so ago we had th© cables telling us about the Labour party’s animal conference then being Held in Belfast. This week we have rubles published which state that the ‘Labour party is now holding its an»m.iJ conference at Derby/ Seems to no the Labour party (Homo brand) is full cousin to Sir Boyle Kocho’s

bird, for while tho latter could be in two places at once, tho former, besides having two 'annuals* in one year—at Belfast, says ‘no' to the question of votes for women, while at Derby to the same question it gives a unanimous ‘Yes!' Can you explain?" I thought I hnd given in this coloumu already all the information possible concerning the different sections of the Labour movement at Home. If “Cable" will call at Hie “N.Z. Times" office and consult our files of six weeks ago ho will learn sufficient to enable him to solve the seeming mystery. Tho conference held at Bollard was that of tho Labour Representation Committee, comprising delegates from the Trades Unions and Socialist bodies. The Independent Labour Tarty now meeting at Derby is “a Socialist organisation," having for its object "the ostaMLhiug of an industrial commonwealth founded upon the .socialisation of b' Vd mtu capital." The proposal- to introduce Italian immigrants to take the place of the deported kanakas to which I referred last v.eek, is me;‘‘ with strong opposition. Tho Sydney*' '-orker" says: "How far the scheme and its promise have commended themselves to Labour is shown in the fact that no sounur was tho Kidston-Oriont agreement made public than five Queensland Labour members saw Prime Minister Deakin about it. They told him that the Queensland Government had not by any means taken all possible steps to secure Australian labour in the ’emergency' alleged to have resulted from the deportation of kanakas. Unfortunately, permits for the dumping of 1050 men have already been granted, and Kidston gets that much of a start in his pursuit of about 5000 said to bo needed. But the deputation of genuine Labourites to Deakin succeeded in extracting a promise from tho too affable Alfred that no more permits would be granted until he sees ‘what Mr Kidston is going to do/" Home-work is a serious cause of sweating. In Birmingham, as in other large towns, there are trades of which some sections aro given’ out by contractors to be done in the homes of the workers. In some cases the home-work is not so bad, for the workers are at least removed from the defects which too often accompany factory life in other cases, though opportunity is taken to extort tho most work for-tho least money. The Birmingham Watch Committee has had a notice from the Home Office as to the prevalence of home-work and tho employment of children. An inspector has been making full inquiries, and found that the work of carding, boxing, and packetill" hooks and eyes, buttons, etc., was very badly paid, and in a large number of cases carried on under conditions which were likely to involve danger of infection. No machinery has yet been devised for carding, and from nineponce to one shilling and twopence is paid for a gross of cards (a pack), each card having two dozen hooks and eyes on it. Tho woman finds her needles and cotton. She, first of all, has to stitch the eyes on, then link the hooks on to them, finally sowing on the hooks, and the week’s work brings in about three shillings!

A bill has been introduced in the Arkansas Legislature to create a commissioner of immigration. By the .ruling of the Commissioner of Commerce and Labour, foreign labourers can b© imported under contract provided the thing is done through a State officer and in the guise of legitimate immigration. Several southern Stat.es have adopted this means of getting round the rational law prohibiting the importation of !'•’ -••rors under contract, and Arkaiu- adopting this method for the bciuik of the employers of that State.