The Southland Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1919. INDUSTRIAL ACTION.

Southland Times, Issue 18756, 17 December 1919, Page 4

The Southland Times PUBLISHED EVERY MORNING. Luceo Non Uro. WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 17, 1919. INDUSTRIAL ACTION.

The report from Greyinouth that the output of coal is to be further limited as from January 4th is probably well founded. It has been generally understood by those in touch with the miners, and. with Labour generally, that more drastic steps would be taken as soon as the elections and the holidays were over. It was recognised by Labour, leaders that it would be a mistake to awaken public resentment on the eve of an election, and that the ends of the extreme section would be best met by waiting until the new year. The go-slow policy has now been in force for over three months, and the men appear to be convinced that another turn of the screw will bring the results they are determined to gain. A further reduction in the output will prevent the accumulation of stocks to be drawn upon should trouble occur during the winter, and there is justification for the belief that the miners are clearing the ground for an appeal to direct action on an extensive scale. What is likely to happen was forecasted by Mr. F. Pirani in a recent speech in Wellington:— “The people of New Zealand should know that there is simmering among the extreme Labour section just, now a movement to carry out in January next a general ‘go-slow’ strike,” said Mr Pirani. “The people who are complaining about the cost of living will find that as a result of that general 'go-slow' strike they will have to pay twice or three times as much for the articles that they consume. I think it is the duty of the State, as soon as possible, to organise New Zealand from one end to the other against that ‘goslow’ strike. This is a matter too serious to be baulked. The information I possess leaves no doubt as to the truth of my "assertion, and those who do not heed my warning will find, no matter what their position in New Zealand is, a holocaust descending upon New Zealand in January and February next.” Mr Pirani, although he is a hard fighter in political matters, is 100 old a campaigner to make wild assertions that time might prove to be ridiculous, and it is obvious that he is well informed as to what is going on under the surface. Some confirmation is also furnished by the Grey River Argus, a newspaper owned by the Labour Party and edited by H. E, Holland, who speaks with full official authority. We take the following paragraph from a recent issue:— “Reports to hand from the mining districts indicate that the mine workers were never more solid in their determination to obtain a considerable improvement in their working conditions, and Unless the coal owners hurry up with their long-overdue concessions, the goslow is liable to become permanently established. The miners are proving by their experiences that, from a safety standpoint alone, the go-slow has accomplished more than all the Mining Acts, actions of inspectors, and investigations put together. On this question of safety alone the miners will have to seriously consider if it is advisable to ever mine coal on the speeding-up system again.” The threat contained in these words cannot be overlooker!, and even if the holocaust that Mr Pirani predicts does not materialise we can be certain that the country will continue to suffer from the go-slow policy until the situation is met by the people of the country through the Government of the day. The first duty of (he new Cabinet will be to make a serious attempt to solve this problem, and it is one of the factors that should assist in the removal of artificial party barriers in the event of the election failing to give either the Reformers or the Liberals an absolute majority in the House. The situation can only be met by the recognition of the changed conditions (hat have resulted from the war. The real merits ol (he miners’ case arc ikj longer the sole determining factors in the dispute. The present position has developed in spite of aik the machinery that exists for the settlement of industrial differences, and it has continued in spite of conferences, in spite of attempts by the Government to act as an intermediary, and in spite of the strongest public opinion. It is an indication of the need for new industrial machinery and for the creation of ne*»- relationships be- I (ween Capital and Labour. The nature of the reform that is required was admirably shown by Mr Skerrett, President of the Welfare League, in the course of hia address at Wellington last week:— “The real remedy is, in my opinion, an improvement in the status of the worker,” said Mr Skerrett. “He must be given a voice in the management of

the factory or business in which he works, anti in the fixation of wages and conditions of employment. He must know the financial results of the business in which he works. In short, the worker must be taken into the confidence of the employer, and then he will soon learn that the success of the business is his | vital concern and his vital interest. The crucial fact I am here to point out is that no such scheme of reform is practicable unless you break down revolutionary Socialism; unless you can satisfy the worker that, talk of class hatred and class war is arrant nonsense, and a real hindrance to the betterment of the workers.” We think Mr Skerrett is on the right lines, and that no satisfactory solution will be found that does not recognise the real factors underlying the present trouble. A period of prosperity, progress, and expansion ought to lie ahead of the Dominion, but we cannot enter upon it until the path has been cleared by the removal of the causes of industrial unrest. The Government of the next five years will have many onerous responsibilities resting upon it, and it is to be hoped that the gravity of the general position will have the effect of removing the party wrangling and strife that threaten to impede the work of reconstruction.