NEXT FEW DAYS WILL PROVE A TESTING TIME FOR LABOUR PARTY UNITY

Otago Daily Times, Issue 27081, 16 May 1949, Page 4

NEXT FEW DAYS WILL PROVE A TESTING TIME FOR LABOUR PARTY UNITY

Industrial Correspondent

WELLINGTON, May 15

The division in the ranks of industrial labour in New Zealand will be wider and more clearly defined than ever after the annual conference of the federation, which will open in Wellington on Tuesday. The conference will no doubt return the “moderates” to office and reaffirm its loyalty to the Labour Party and the Government, but its resolutions will do little to alter the general industrial labour alignment.

Born in 1937 out of a truce between rival organisations, the Alliance of Labour and the Trades and Labour Council, the New Zealand Federation of Labour has in post-\Var years suffered a severe strain of conflict between the two extremes in the industrial labour movement. Its embarrassments are similar to those of trade union national organisations in other parts of the world. This year these difficulties have become even greater, until now they have undoubtedly weakened the industrial labour movement and must also affect political Labour at the polls. Compulsory military training, the carpenters’ dispute and the national executive’s accusations against the watersiders are listed as the three chief items for this year’s conference. The proceedings are likely to open with the national executive’s proposal to reject the. watersiders from membership until they have apologised for arid withdrawn the “ scurrilous ” letter accusing the executive of acting as “ agents of the employing class ” in the carpenters’ dispute. This move from the executive appears designed to place the watersiders on the defensive, a role which they are unlikely to accept. It will also test the mood of the conference. The biggest industrial issue is undoubtedly the carpenters’ dispute at Auckland and the Government’s proposal to register the new union. There cannot fail to be a sharp division at the conference in which not only the left-wing elements, but also some of the “ moderates ” will oppose the Government’s policy.

Compulsory military training is one more issue on which the political Labour leaders are asking the trade union movement to take a new approach to the traditional Labour policy. Opposition to conscription in any form was one of the first planks of the political platform when the party was under the guidance of Mr H. E. Holland. • There are strong sections of the trade union movement who vigorously oppose any suggestion of compulsion in peace time, and it remains to be seen whether the Government will ask for a straight-out “ Yes ” or “ No ” from the conference. The usual election year call for unity and loyalty to the Labour Government will be made and appropriate resolutions will be carried, but it is impossible to escape the fact that disunity in the labour movement has not been greater since the Government took office, and that its political effects will be felt in some of the key electorates at the general election. For official posts in the Federation of Labour there is no sharply-defined contest, and it is assumed that the “moderates” will again dominate the scene. For the presidency the nominated opponents of the sitting president, Mr A. W. Croskery, will be Mr John Roberts, of Christchurch, and Mr W B. Richards, of Dunedin. Mr Richards is also norninated to contest the vice-presidency with Mr F. P. Walsh It is expected that there will be little, if any. change in the national executive. The conference will be followed on Saturday by the opening of the conference of the New Zealand Labour Party.