LABOUR OLIGARCHY

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXI, Issue 6996, 9 December 1909, Page 6

LABOUR OLIGARCHY

! "Which is tho moro , effective power," asks a'Sydney newspaper of recent date, "a strike oligarchy or the Government ?" It oomes to tho conclusion, that the former lias deposed tho latter. In view of recent happenings in New South Wales and the ever present possibilities the verdict seems to he perfectly right. Learning by hitter experience- the widespread evil caused by industrial strikes tho Legislature following the example of other countries lias passed into law a series of enactments' for preventing such upheavals or bringing them to an early conclusion. Yet in spite of this legislation and in direct defiance of the law a strike takes place which threatens to paralyse commerce and almost every system of transport. Coal is an absolute necessity to every community. Access to its -use is a 1 primary right. This is supposed to be guaranteed to the people by the statutes bearing upon strikes, lock-outs and conspiracy. Trade proceeds upon the assumption that supplies of coal will be as regular as supplies of bread and meat—until anew and dominating authority takes the field and announces that because of a difference of opinion with certain individuals every citizen shall be treated as an offender and deprived of coal until the dispute shall have been settled. The result is that within twenty-four hours the people are made to realise that Parliament is not '• the supreme authority, that its laws to onsure the common protection are so much useless litter. The cold truth is that where this sort of thing takes place there are two Governments, and the one to which the citizen'looks for protection is ineffective. The position is one of sectional anarchy and must be accepted as such. If it is beyond the wit of a

Legislature to frame a law to shelter society from organised attack by cither organised Labour or organised Capital the constitutional system fails in a vital degree. Tho significance of this has an>importance far above the mere development of disputes between employers and employees, for a strike by men who control public necessities is equivalent to a declaration of war upon the whole population. The proprietary interests aro generally very well able to look after themselves, and as'a rule aro not altogether blameless. The ordinary citizen is in a different position,, and, in nine cases out of ten, is made* the innocent victim of a dispute which. is not 'his and which ho can do nothing to control. The artisan and labouror thrown out of work by the paralysing effect of such a strike suffers more acutely than tho striker himself as & rule. His position is even worse than! if he had been robbed by force or do-< frauded by trick, for in cither case Jio'l would have remedy against his enemies, j but against tho other outrageous wrwngi the law can give him no protection. In handling this momentous subject at Parliament is always beset by fear of i depriving the individual - worker of hisi inherent right to say whether ho will! work or not and troubled by tho dan-! ger of committing itself'' to decisions t which cannot be enforced. It really ; does seem, however, that the law of > conspiracy will have . to be made very) much more strict, and that the active ( principals in these outbreaks be made, more responsible for their activities. Men.who capture the machinery of unionism aro invested with power over a weapon of great potential. danger to the commonweal and ought to be made to realise that fact. If they aro not they will eventually become,, if thoy. have nob already done bo, the supreme authority in the land.