A HARD CASE

New Zealand Times, Volume XXXVIII, Issue 8683, 17 March 1914, Page 8

A HARD CASE

UNIONS AT VARIANCE. An extremely bard case of unemployment has come under the notice of 'Mr H. J. Reardon, secretary of the (General Labourers’ Union. A member ■of this union, stated Hr Reardon, ■was working on the wharf when he was put off because he was not a member of tho new Wharf Labourers’ Union. He had nothing whatever to do with tho strike and although hard of hearing, was tv good worker. He produced a clearance from the General Labourers’ Union, and showed it to the secretary of the- new Waterside Workers’ Union, who refused to accept it. and demanded 7s for entry fee. Tho man has a wife and five children (who arc in receipt of charitable aid) and has had a very bad run —be simply did not possess 7s. “It seems ro lie,” said Hr Reardon, “that the least tho now union could have done would have been to change clearances like all other unions do.”

A “Times” reporter interviewed Hr Turdie, secretary of the new Wharf Labourers’ Union, who stated that he knew nothing about this particular case, but his union had decided, he said, to accept no clearance cards from any union (their own clearance cards had hce-a refused in Auckland) and to make entry into their ranks a strictly cash affair.