COOPERATION NEEDED

Waimate Daily Advertiser, Volume XXIV, 11 April 1927, Page 5

COOPERATION NEEDED

KEY TO WEALTH. WELLINGTON, April 4. “There is no reason why New Zealand should not be just as prosperous cs America. You have a population jusit as intelligent as any in the world, but there must be closer co-operation between employer and the employee.” These views were expressed by Mr C. H. Haddsell, of the General Electric Company of America, who is visiting New Zealand, at the Rotary Club luncheon at Wellington. In introducing Mr Haddsell, Mr J. R. Simpson said that their guest was a New Zealander by birth, and had received his early engineering training at Canterbury College and at the Addington Railway Workshops. In 1960 he went to England, and was employed on the manufacture and design of electrical machinery until the end of 1902, when lie proceeded to the United States of America, mid after being associated with various electrical engineering concerns he joined the General Electrical Company.

Conditions in America, particularly since the war, had been such, said Mr Haddsell in his introductory remarks, as to interest the rest of the world. In his opinion her prosperity was attributable to the co-oper-ation and friendly relationships that existed between the employer and employee. Conditions had improved tremendously during the last twenty-five years. The American worker was much better off today than he had ever been. America was a great money-making nation, but at »the same time she realised that it paid to consider the employee, who, in many cases, was given an interest in the firm by whom he was employed. The United States had always been in the fortunate position of being able to absorb all the labour offering. To have the confidence of the worker was essential, and the only way to obtain it was to convince him that he was getting a square deal. Continuing, Mr Haddsell pointed out that in America thousands of pounds were paid out yearly by the business establishments to their employees for offering suggestions in order to increase production, and, generally, to bring about improved conditions. In New Zealand a somewhat different system was in operation, legislation having been introduced which favoured trade unionism. “Now, I am not in favour of that kind of legislation at all,” remarked Mr Haddsell. “You can get better results by dealing with your employee direct through trade unions. Your endeavour should not be to make your men work harder, but rather to increase the standard of efficiency. There is no reason why New Zealand should not be just as prosperous as America. You have a population just as intelligent as any in the world, but you must co-operate more than you have done in the past.”