THE INDUSTRIAL SITUATION.

Otago Witness, Issue 2928, 27 April 1910, Page 11

THE INDUSTRIAL SITUATION.

The following letter appeared in the Otago Daily Times on the 21st inst.: Sik,— I have always been an optimist, and trust'l shall remain one until the end Ox the chapter, but all the same I am convinced that the time is opportune when a few words of warning to the workers may not 'be out of place. Where trusts such as control the supply of sugar and kerosene do not exist competition has become so keen that profits are reduced to a minimum, and I am satisfied that at the present time there are very few employers making any more than a "living wage"— in fact, there are numbers who are not so fortunate as to get even this. Unfortunately, there- is a- growing tendency on the part of the workers throughout the Dominion to restrict the output of the various industries in which they may be employed, and it is a well-known fact that they rarely give a fair day's work for a fair day's pay. This sort of thing cannot go on for long, and bad times, which are sure to come sooner or later, will mean a restriction of output, not this time on the part of the workers, but on the part of employers, and the former will assuredly have to pay the penalty. Unionism is a good thing in its way; but, alas! unionism has gone mad, and an effort is being made in every conceivable manner to kill the goose which lays the golden egg. The harmony at one time existing between master and man —or, 1 should now say —man and master —has disappeared, and in its place has grown .up a feeling of antagonism against capital. Why this feeling should exist is beyond my comprehension, as the great majority of men who made this were, after all, only emigrants, who landed on these shores with little, if any, hard cash at their disposal, but were possessed of grit and determination, and by shee. hard work and selfdenial forced their way to the front. They made money, and with an earnest desire to see the land of their adoption flourish, invested their savings in other industries which now employ tens of thousands of workers. These very industries are now looked upon as devouring monsters, and every known attempt is made to cripple them. Go into any one of them you like, and I venture to say you will not find one individual who is working in the hope that he may one day be manager himself. Scores of the employees no doubt had this hope at one time, and many a castle they built in the air, but let one worker show the slightest inclination to rise above his •fellows and his life would not be worth living. I am not writing at random, because- I know of young men who were possessed of the same grit and determination as their fathers before thorn, but whenever they made an effort to push the work ahead they were immediately told to go easy, otherwise it would be the worse for them. One young man could not go slow even when he tried, so his tally over and above the workers' arranged number was passed to some loafing companions. Many a worker will read these lines, and while admitting the truth of them will console himself by saying, " Why should I exert myself so that my employer can drive about in a motor car and sit in the dress circle at the theatre when I can only afford a tram car and the pit?" My advice to any who have these thoughts is: " Drink less beer, smoke fewer cigarettes, take more interest in your employer's business, and he will very soon take an interest in you, and when you are as old as he is you will have a very good chance of driving your own motor car and sitting in the dress circle at the theatre. The great majority of employers in the Dominion were just what you are now, so don't allow a feeling of jealousy to rise within you because they have been successful." I have written a longer letter than I first intended, but just a few more lines, Sir, and I am done. New Zealand is prosperous in a way, but this winter is going; to

be a trying one for the worker, and those who are in good situations should see that they keep them. Employers are getting very tired of the state of affairs existing, and those who are for ever stirring up trouble will have something to think about before very long if they do not mend their ways.—l am, etc., Employee. Dunedin, April 16.