LABOR NOTES.

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume XXXIX, Issue 12707, 9 March 1912, Page 8 (Supplement)

LABOR NOTES.

(By D.W.C.) (Published by Arrangement.) During the week the Slaughtermen's, Painters, Bakers' Drivers', Plumbers', General Laborers'. Waterside Workers' and Carpenters' Unions held their usual meetings. It was' decided at the Painters' Union meeting that they be represented at the Easter Conference, and their energetic secretary, Mr J. H. Hall, has been selected as the representative. Mr Oill,.lnglis. secretary, of ; the DrK;efV Uiiibii; "was -selected * to -• re>re"2 sent the drivers -at their conference, to be held at Easter time also. 'There -will be quite a party of Labor delegates from Gisborne at Easter. A special meeting of the Inangahua Miners' Union held recently discussed the statement of Mr P. H. Hickey (quoted in last week's Labor notes) m which he stated it was unnecessary for Unionists to keep their agreements with the employers. The meeting unanimously censured Mr Hickey and approved of the principle that no matter what occurred the Inangahua Miners' Union would hold fast to its agreements. Mr Hickey, writing in the last issue of the Maonland Worker, states that he takes the vote of censure with a smile of welcome, and refuses to have his actions dictated by men who pass such resolutions. Men who class themselves as unionists, and are part and parcel of a Federation, and yet declare that no master what occurs they are going to stick to their agreement, are dangerous. No longer can they be regarded as comrades in the fight, but rather as cravenhearted creatures who seek shelter behind the boss the moment the battle becomes keen. It is pleasing to note that there is at least one Union in the Federation of La-bor (and I believe there are several more) who resent the advice of one of the officials to toss every agreement, to Hades as soon as it suits them. If Mr Hickey had his way unionists would cease to be known as anything else than a lot of liars whose word could not be relied upon. The Brisbane tramway strike has been declared settled. I cannot help but think better results would have been obtained if the principle of the general strike had not been adopted. As it was only tliose employers who employed union labor suffered. Take, for instance, the Daily Mail newspaper: the proprietors of that paper employed only union labor, that paner was reduced to practically a two-leaf pamphlet, while the Courier, whose proprietors Would never employ unionists, flourished as the green ha.y tree. This is indeed a. case where, if the workers had struck right at the ballot box, there would have been no need to have struck work. At- the last meeting of Ihe Carpenters' Union, held last Thursday' evening, the secretary reported that several of the niemhers had not yet returned their voting paper, re referring the dispute fixating between the Union and the local builders <o the Conciliation Council. He would like members to attend to this matter at once. Mr 'D. \V. Coleman has been reelected president of the Amalgamated Society of Carpenters and Joiners.. The Hawke's Bay Trades and Labor Council , will be represented at the Labor Conference by the President, Mr D. Golder. Several unions are also sending representatives to the trades conferences. This will be the "first occasion on which Hawke's Bay has been represented at the Labor Conference, the Trades and Labor Council having only been formed during the last twelve months. The Amalgamated Society of Railway ■•Servants, who have been sitting in conference during the past week, have adopted Professor Mills' unity proposals, and also intend to be represented at the trades conference at Easter time Mr Dan Sullivan, president of the Trades and Labor Council, has been appointed managing editor of the Christchurch edition of the' Voice of Labor. Labor's objective — this can never be too often repeated — is the socialisation of all the means of life. But— and this too is important enough to be said again and again — Labor does not demand that its objective shall be attained in one sweeping and all-comprehensive measure. The Labor movement is an eminently reasonable one. It does not -bend its energies upon the achievement of the impossible, it is content to adjust its methods to the necessities of human nature. The Labor movement, by making it impossible for one class to. rob another of the fruits of its industry, by securing to every man ,*he full reward of his toil, will bring peace and: goodwill into the daily life of mankind. Revolutionary results by evolutionary methods — that is the guiding principle of the Labor movement. One by one the Labor party will force the planks of their platform into existence.' In this way the nation av ill be" educated to greater and wider measures of public ownership. In this way Capitalism will be ; gradually narrowed down - and,, restricted in its expropriating operations, while the power of the people for the Common Good becomes greater and greater with every enlightening extension of the industrial activities of tfte State. The present system of society is doomed. It has passed the • historical stage when it was of service to mankind, and has reached a stage when it must give place to a system which will give to every man the full reward of his toil. Wlien all the proposals of the Labor party have become embodied in legislative enactments, something like a revolution will- have been affected. But the method will have carried no violent desolation of the social system — there will have been no consuming flames and no piled debris.