CADBURY BROTHERS, LTD.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20961, 26 February 1930, Page 14

CADBURY BROTHERS, LTD.

A CONTENTED STAFF. CO-OPERATION BETWEEN CAPITAL AND LABOUR. (Special to Daily Times.) WELLINGTON, February 25. Mr Barrow Cadbury, chairman of directors of Cadbury Bros., Ltd., Bourpville, Birmingham, was a passenger by the Marama, which arrived at Wellington from Sydney to-day. Mr Cadbury is accompanied by Mrs Cadbury, Miss Dorothy A. Cadbury (one of the nine managing directors of the company), and Miss G M, Cadbury. They have just completed a tour of three months in Australia, partly on business and partly on holiday, and will make a brief tour of New Zealand.

Interviewed. Mr Cadbury stated that his firm had just completed its centenary. During the wholc of that time it had experienced no serious industrial trouble. Harmony in working had been arrived at by the close co-operation between capita! and labour. Under the works councils for men and women employees, eight managers, or departmental ‘ heads, met eight representatives of the employees once a fortnight to discuss the working conditions and settle any little grievances that might have arisen. Wages were regulated by the unions and the interim industrial council. The majority of their hands were employed! on piecework with a minimum wage fixed by the council. Superannuation schemes were contributed to on an equal basis. The scheme which had been in operation for 11 years had proved so highly successful that he thought it coiild be adopted with advantage by the majority of industrial concerns.

. Education, said Mr Cadbury,.formed an important requirement for the "employees, about 9000 of whom were engaged at Bournville. Particularly did this apply to the younger employees. - A condition of the employment of children aged less than 10 years was that they should attend a school for at least two half-days each wook, and of those between the ages of 16 and 18 that they should attend classes at least one halfday a week. This regulation was carried out at the expense of the company. About 40 per cent, of the employees of the factory resided at Bournyille. The township, however, was under the control of an independent trust.