INDUSTRIAL WORLD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 16099, 13 June 1914, Page 7

INDUSTRIAL WORLD.

HEWS 'AND NOTES. BT Tin HON. J. T. Paul, M.L.C. Ike roe of information and brief comment* on questions coming under this heading ' «re always welcome. ' Books, pamphlets, 1 eto.„ sent to the author of this column will fclso be noticed. MEETINGS FOR THE WEEK. Tho following ; Labour organisations will meet in the Trades Hall, Moray place, during the current week:— To-night ■ (Saturday)— Bakers. ' Monday—Grocers; Tinsmiths; Cycle Workers. Tuesday—Bootmakers;, Plumbers; Soft Goods; Slaughtermen; Engineers (committee). ' Wednesday—Printers' Machinists. Thursday—Otogo Labour Council; Hairdressers;, Social Demboratio Party. Friday—Engineers. Saturday—Typographical (board). WELLINGTON WATERSIDERS AND UNIONISM. The Wellington waterside workers have had more than their sharo of trouble, but apparently there is .more ahead. " Optimist" ("Labour Notes," Evening Post) writes as follows: —"There appears to be trouble ahead for the Wellington Waterside Workers' Union. Although the union has gone through strenuous times since registration, the fact of employers granting preference to a section of members of the union, as against the other membears, with the executive of the union against this preference, will, bring matters to a crisis. 'Die only way out for the employers is to give permanent employment to tne preference men or to abandon preference. OthemwisA it seems inevitable that trouble will arise. The men cannot servo two masters —their union and the employers—and as tho waterfront cannot bo run lay only preference men, something ought to be done before trouble eventuates. A special meeting of the Wharf Labourers' Union is, callod for Monday night, 15th June, when the appointors eiirt of a rules-revision oommittee will be considered, and the balance sheet and auditors' report upon it (if available) will be presented. Other mattere will also be dealt with." THE JULY CONGRESS. Very little interest is being evinced locally in the Labour Conference called, by the United Federation of Labour. Many unions have decided to take no part in' it, and some have eveii refused to join with others to send one delegate to represent several unions. The Labourers' Union has decided to be represented. Attempts are being made in Auck- j land to work up enthusiasm. "Industrial Tramp" (Auckland Star) reports that amass meeting, attended by 100 unionsiste, has been held. " The meeting was called by ■ the Auckland Secretaries' Association, and the president, Mr O. J. Vealo, occupied the chair," says " Tramp." " The meeting was purely an educational one, aad it was not intended to take the minds of the unions upon the proposals to be submitted to the conference. ■ Seeing, that one matter to be considered by the July Conference is the linking-up with the Australian Labour Federation, recently established, copies of the Australian constitution and platform were circulated at the meeting, and these will be submitted to the looal unions as they meet, and it is hoped that'the unions will instruct their delegates to the conference how to act when the time arrives at tho July gathering. The Australian constitution and platform are just as comprehensive and the objective as identical as . those adopted for ■ the Federation of Labour and Social Democratic Party at the last July Congress, but the machinery is more' democratic, and .not 60 complicated, and parried out at half the cost to tho affiliated unions. It has been frankly admitted i that the reason that unions have not joined the existing parties to the extent hoped for by the July;_Congress of '1913 is that the capitation decided on —viz., 4s per member per aimum—is too costly for the average' union in Ne>w Zealand on the present contribution scale, and the Australian capitation is only one-half that amount. Then again, the machinery is too complicated, and does not give sufficient autonomy to the local district council. Tho only resolution passed at . last Thursday's meeting was to ask tho Secretaries' Association to call other meetings for educational purposes and general discussion." *. THE SOCIAL UNREST AND lIS REMEDY. A notable contribution has been made by Mr J. Ramsay Mac Donald, the British Labour M.P.,. to the question of _ social : unrest. He has hid a now book published— "The Social TJnrest: its Cause and SoluIn many respects the book is a notable and; valuable addition to the literature on the ..question. In a short introductory note Mr MacDonald sho\ira that since 1910 the unrest jias been world-wide, not only breaking out in the European countries, but equally manifesting itself m China, Australia, and the United Statea " A breath of revolutionary life," he says, "seemed to be passing over the world, and the.established order in every land had-to grapple with a restiveness which threatened its'overthrow." He is persuaded that under existing conditions the volcanic' fires are never- far from the surface, and may burst forth again at any moment. ' It is therefore necessary that the cause of these social rebellions should be explained and understood, and it is- this that Mr MacDonald attcrripts in his book. In a brief historical chapter the author ; emphasise© that Labour unrest is no new phenomenon in Britain. One might go back to the peasants' revolt of the fourteenth century, and from then until the present day in Dublin the fires of revolt have bean active or latent. Sir Thomas More in his day gave eloquent expression to .working class wrongs. But it was the industrial revolution toward the end of the eighteenth century and dUring the nineteenth century which, created the modern, economic ' prob-, lems and gave people a hew grouping of torces. . Mr Mac Donald holds that the prevailing unrest is inherent in tie present order of society. " The present order of society involves _ two essential antagonisms which doom it to a perpetual condition of conflict —the economic antagonism between the various economic interests (capitalist, workman, consumer) and the moral antagonism as x> whether economic advantage or human ends are to be the dominating factors in industry. Hero is the seat of tho trouble." And, again: ."Labour unrest ; will not disappear until isoine human order of society is established." Mr Mac Donald contends that a policy of social transformation is being steadily carried ou3 ! which, while reforming within the old order, is also leading toward a new world, a regenerated society; trades unionism is broadening out, not content merely to haggle for a better price in the labour market, but determined profoundly to modify and change social relationships. To this end it supplements workshop action by political action, and its battlefield' has become national. Social legislation will be applied in many directions, but Mr Mac Donald realises that there are limits to the social reforms which can bo imposed on the capitalist system, and that, when that point has been passed, the State which continues to "engraft Humanism upon Capitalism" must face either che " futile policy of protection or the Socialist policy of nationalisation." It 'is hardly necessary to say that Mr MaeDonald advocates the Socialist alternative. He does, not see the possibility • of making real progress until the monopolised agents of wealth-production and distribution are publicly owned and used to establish a human order, and he would begin with the. land, the mines, and the railways. He is the advocate of a Socialism that would prevent exploitation and " retain for social use benefits designed for tho whole nation." A REVIVAL IN CO-OPERATION-Signs of at least a partial revival in cooperation are observable in our midst. The increased cost of living and partial unemployment hae had the effeot of directing attention to the benefits of co-operation in the purchase of food supplies. Elsewhere ' co-operative undertakings of all descriptions are making groat progress. Co-operative grain elovators are working successfully in the State of Saskatchewan, Canada, and the Department of Agriculturo is making a strenuous effort to extend the movement among agriculturists. A director of co-operative organisation lias been .appointed under tho department, and invitations have keen extended to any group of farmers who are thinking of getting to-rr-her for tho purpose of collcctivc effort »•- any direction for tho improvement of fneir position by bringing about better facilities and prices, to make application to the department and the organiser will be 6ent along. Already, the movement has resulted in tho establishment of 200 grain elevators in tho State. 'The Derby Society's trade ■ for 1913 approached three-quarter? of a million,_ the actual figures being £733,087, ■ which is an increase of £42,730 over that of 1912. There were record 6ales in all departments, but the highest rates of increases are shown in bread, milk, and green fruit, the two latter being the most recent businesses added to the .society's trade. Considering the war cloud shadow cast over the land by the unsettled conditions

in tie Balkans last year, the Co-operativo Wholesale Society in Hungary has made good progress. The sales of tne wholesalo societies have been increased by £56,000 during the year, making the total £1,169,000 and the retail societies by £119,000, making their total £2,270,000. At the beginning of the yoar propaganda commenced among tho students of the colleges in Germany, with tho object of securing tho combination of practice with tho theory of the co-operative movement. One of tho articles of tho association which has been formed reads thus: —"Tho task of tho association is to spread and deepen cooperative thought amongst the students of German collages, and to unite them to the fostering and advancement of the 'co-opera-tive ' by means of organisations of their own and by associated effort in the sphere of 00-operativo idea." In Italia Irredenta (Unredeemed Italy)— so styled by Italians because tho region fa under Austrian .rule, though tho population is Italian in race and language—a great advance has been made by the co-oporativo movement. In this region, comprising Trieste, Istria, and Friuli, with the seaport of Trieste as the centre of activity, tnero have been opened a dozen or more establishments during the past 12 months, and in the courso of only two months no fewer than 13 butchering establishments were added to those already in_ operation. So alarmed were the butchers in Trieste, where nino of the shops were opened, that they reduced the price of meat by a fortnight before tho shops were opened. The last balance sheet of the societies shows an increase of 82i per cent, in their volume of trade. JOTTINGS. The currant number of the Railway Officers' Advocate is acknowledged with thanks. The Co-operative Wholesalo Society has established a new record, the sales for 1913 reaching the magnificent total of £31,370,000. The Duke of Devonshire has announced that the wages of all the married workmen in his employ getting • less than 23s would be raised Is a week. Brisbane unions ,are carrying resolutions pledging their members to deal only with master bakers who havo adopted the day baking system. The Victorian Clerks' Wage 3 Board has just completed its labours. It provides a 44 hours' work, with remuneration based on the various grades at from £2 15s per week to £6 10s for special clerical responsibilities. Tho Perth (W.A.) Labour Federation has rejected the Committee of the Churches' recommendation that the compulsory unionism strike be ended by the carpenters resunimg work in _ the old plaoes under a guarantee of non-victimisation. The" federation complained that the Church Committee made no reference to the locking out by employers which it alleges was the cause of the strike. _ i Tho Labour papers in Australia _ are jubilant (says a northern Labour writerl over tho fact that Sir lan Hamilton praised the foundation work done with regard to tho military training in Australia; also his statements in Auckland With regard to cheap coolie labour. The Labour Party was in power_ when the foundation of the military training 1 scheme was laid. His references to coolie labour, too, bear out in every respect what the average Australian Labourite has been pointing out for years. If I were a factory employee, a workman on the railroads, or a wage-earner of any sort, I would undoubtedly join the union of my trade. If I disapproved of its policy I would join in order to fight that policy; if the union leaders were dishonest I would join in order to put them out. I believe in the union, and I believe that all men who are benefited by the union are morally bound to help to the extent of their power in the common interests advanced by the union.—Theodore Roosevelt The' New South Wales Labour Council has appointed Mr M. Hemwood aa a permanent offioial and adviser to all unions having business connected with Arbitration Court or Wages Boards. Mr Hemwood's salary is £5 per week and his duties ' are a"s follow:—(a) To give advice in respect to all Arbitration Court and Wages Board matters, and prepare all documents in connection -with same, (b) To conduct cases before Arbitration Courts and Wages Boards. Ho shall devote his time exclusively to the work of the Labour Council's Industrial Arbitration Department. The Socoialists of Belgium have entered the factory world with t-eh establishment of ' a cotton factory employing 100 men. Tho building cost £16,000, and the equipment £6000. Tho employees are paid from 5 to 10 per cent, above tho union scale. The entire output will be sold to the various Belgian co-operativo stores. The .establishment of the cotton factory, hae brought forth a storm of rage against th© co-operatives on the part of tne manufacturers, of Belgium, but the workers are asking the latter whether they think they have a monopoly of manufacturing.