INDUSTRIAL WORLD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 17936, 15 May 1920, Page 14

INDUSTRIAL WORLD.

NEWS AHD NOTES.

By J, T. Paxil

TO C»KBESFOMDEKT. "Subscriber."—Hie matter to whiah you rafac vu published ia a late issue oi Stearfe Review, Stowing tho remits of » medical examination, of of men from 18 to 25 yeonr in various Yorkshire industries. Of tho miners 68.9 per cent, were placed ia the first da®, and only 5.5 per cent. ia the fourth (the lowest). Itaxtiie workers tad frobi 37.5 per cent, to 54.6 per cent, ill the first ol&as, and from 3.8 to 10.1 in the fourth olaaa. Tailora were worse still, only 33.9 being in first-claaa health, while 11.2 were placed in the lowest class. The only group found with a better health record than the miners was one section of the farm workers. ONE MEMBER ONE VOTE. The workers in an industry in Auckland (according to "Industrial Tramp" in the Star) recently decided to form a union, and it was registered under tho Arbitration Act. The employers, not to be outdone, met together, and decided . to organiso their workers into a guild, and haw it registered under the Incorporated Societies Act. A scalo of wagea and working conditions has been; drawn up, and a set of rulca formulated. for tho government of the guild, which, by the courtesy of an employe*, "Industrial Tramp" has been permitted to inspect. One of the rules roads: "Members drawing salaries over £200 per annum shall be entitled to two votes; other members, one Toto. Sw.h differential voting shall be adopted only for tho election of Hie executive committee officers and any dominion referendum. On all ot.hor occasions each member shall have ono vote." THE OTAGO LABOUR COUNCIL. The decision of the Otago Labour Councal to c&ncel its affiliation with tho United Federation of Labour creates an interesting position in local Labour circles. The federation is the only national representative of craft and, though it was responsible for 'the conference which formed the National Industrial Alliance of Labour, it finds itself without the pale on the ground that ;it is not organised along the lines of industry. Aa yet the local council has no definite plan of reorganisation in hand, but it : s probable that some steps will be taken towards more complete' organisation on industrial rather than craft lines. The recent cablegram from London is mostS interesting in this connection. In Englaind. as in the dominion, there is n transport workers' federation —at Home it is called ths Triple Alliance. A conference of minors, raHwaymen. and transporters has decided not to extend the soope of the alliance, and this decision was made necessary because of the efforts of the engineers and toetal workers to secure membership. The engineers are reported to have joined the local Alliance of Labour. The cablegram. ?tells us that "tho leaders of tho alii, r'neo igreed that the possibilities of the one-big-uhion idea was limited, _ and that enlargement of the membership would only weakln the chances of the alliance m united strike; aotion." \ THE OJUD RACE. Thef iaoe between tho cost of living and wages goes oa without abatement. Increased wages to northern tramway workers have • booQ followed by increased fares which! of course, in turn increases the cost of liying. Following the granting of increased wagea to the Auckland tramway workers comes a now daim from the Tramway Officers' Union. Hie present agreement has still 12 months to run, and the weekly wages granted under that agreement, together with the proposed increases within parentheses, are as follow:— traffic inspectors, £5 2s 6d (7s 6d); depot: officera, £5 2s 6d (7s 6d>; chief motor inspector, £5 2s 6d;, motor inspectors, £1 17s 6d (12s 6d and 7s 6d); despatchers, £4 10s (12s 6d and 7s 6d); traffic inspectors, £4- lOji (12s 6d and 7s 6d); second engineer, £6 (IDs); senior shift engineer, £5 10s (12s 6d); relieving shift engineer, £5 10b; junior shift Engineers, £5 5a (10b) ; overhead foremen, £4 17s 6d (7a 6d); depot foreman, day, £4 17s 6d (7s 6d); night, £4 17s 6d_ (10s); relieving, £4 17s 6d (15s); foreman engineers, ishop, £5 2s 6d (12s 6d); foremen,'armature winder, blacksmith, paint shop, £4 16s; foreman, truck overhaulers, £4 16s (6s); permanent way gangers, first-class, £4 7s 6d ,(128 6d, second-olass. £4 2s 6d (12s 6d); storekeeper, £4- 5a (ss); storeman, £3 15s (ss); workshops clerk, £3 10s (255); power station cleric, £3 10s (255); revenue and pay clerks, £4; traffic and permanent way clerks, £3 15s; assistant draughtsmen, £2 (ss). / . AN INNOVATION. The appointment of Mr G. R. Bullock, New 'Zealand superintendent of the New Zealand Shipping Company, as chairman of the tribunal ,which will adjudicate on tho dispute between the Amalgamated Society of ilailway Servants section and the Government, marks an interesting innovation. Mr Bollock's task is on interesting and responsible one, and it is a great tribute to his impartiality that he has been accepted for the!position._ The decision of the Federal Government to appoint a special tribunal to settle a dispute on the Sydney waterfront regarding ' preference to unionists and the abolition. of the present mustering arrangements has ibrought a protest from Mr Justice Higginsi (president of the Commonwealth Arbitration Court). "If there is ono thing clear and fundamental in British law," said Mr Justioe Higgins, "it is that fho Grown has no power to create tribunals unless authorised by statute. The executive must notinterfere in judicial matters. Above all, anyone who knows anything obotit industrial: disputes must know thai there is nothing- more harmful to peace in industry than for the Government to concede a new tribunal to pie party who is dissatisfied with, the finding of the legitimate tribunal. Thefe would be a ghastly result if the finding of the legitimate tribunal is to be overriddfeno, or possibly overridden, by the find- • ing 'of an Executive tribunal." ARE REST PERIODS NECESSARY? .ia soiue recent cuuiuh "suiojtmg wnirj'' has 'jipfeaitjcl as a new deiuana. It iias raised t&o ice oi several employers, but Mr i!'. A.' M'Kenzio, a woii-Kiiown. .hngljsto writer, who has recently returned from toe Uuitkl States, says some things which mignt help us towards a solution. He says';— "No ono will accuse American employers of not attempting to extract ttio last ounce of effort from their wockers. \et many of yiem. hiwo adopted the plan of "nast periods,- as they are called there, believing that : they lead to greater output. '"I2be National Industrial Conference Board, an organisation to tho scientific investigation oi Labour problems, financed by taa'. kadiing firms of America, recently studied this matter. It found that out of 233 big. iqatabliahmouie, 104 had tried Vest periods,' and only 15 had disoontiAued them after : triaL, Tho opinion of the employers was, .'on'-the whole, decidedly favourable. They: , fotrad that it paya in output and quality of work, leasena fatigue, and reduces. accidents." There ' aro difficulties in some oases, where a rest period would mean spoilt goods or an unreasonable amount of time lost in getting things moving again. Some affirm that the average employoo takes plenty of rest in an eight-hours' day, and the manager of a largo company averred that all the quarfete started in the rest room. Mr M'Kesnzie continues :— "PLeco-workers make another diffioulty. Many, piece-workers do not care to lose the time. It J3 hard to convince them that their 'lowtpnt would be greater, and not le6», because of the pause. They blockthe way for others who are paid by the day. :' : • "The endeavour to find out tie actual statistical result of the 'rest period' on output failed. These are so many variables entering into the matter of production that it is to detect what effect any particular ono has on the whole. * "Tile only concdnsion which it has been possible for «s to make," said the industrial engineer of an establishment where 4000 people ; were given 'rest periods,' "ia one based , ; on common sense. We beKerre that it is self-evident that a fe»- minutes in the middle!'of the morning artd in the middle of thei'aftornoon devoted to relaxation and to cxercises whioh will straighten curt the cramped bones and nraedes of workers will have beneficial in ewry wa.y. It may bo that these periods cause a temporary slowing down in, production. Here, again, we believe ■ that this temporary abatement is compensated in the long run.'" Tha ewployoea' ameeeoa in the ttphcidisputo hoard at the ConciKataon Council last weak, included two yowng women', whose graap of the business in hand created some astonish moot among the ranks of'the opposition (says the Lyttolton Times). On on© occasion Mr F. Cooper was explaining tho concessions that tho employers had agreed to make. "But those ato not concessions. "We are already given * ■ thoeo privilege# ia tbe Faotorieo 1 AflU"