AFFAIRS IN RUSSIA

Waikato Times, Volume 102, Issue 17222, 4 October 1927, Page 4

AFFAIRS IN RUSSIA

POSTAL EMPLOYEES AT ODDS WITH GOVERNMENT. Complaints that the administration of the postal, telephone and telegraph service in Soviet Russia discharges union men and replaces them with nonunionists, thus making itself partly responsible for the fact that 13 per cent, of the organised employees are idle, were made at the recent biennial convention of Union of Postal, Telephone and Telegraph Workers, held in Moscow. These charges were backed up by the report of the chairman of the Central Committee of the union and aroused bitter comment. Another cause of unemployment was said to be the abuse of overtime w r ork in many divisions of the postal service. The allowance granted to unemployed postal workers is slightly less than 5 dollars a month and the union itself is taking care of only IS per cent, of its idle members. Union Grows Larger. Despite these handicaps, however, the membership of the union, as quoted from the chairman’s report by Trud, the official newspaper of the All-Rus-sian Federation of Labour, has risen to 114,3G4 as against 102,500 in 1925. The chairman confirmed the complaints of some delegates about the large number of disputes between the trades unions and the Commissariat of Posts, Telephones and Telegraphs, due to the failure of many of the departments to observe the clauses of the collective agreement or the provisions of social legislation. Regarding wages, it was pointed out that the present condition of the finances of the Soviet Govcrijacnt militated against any increases in the neat’ future, althougii the average monthly wage of 32 dollars was only 63 per cent, of the pre-war pay. In (his connections dispute arose regarding the advisability of admitting rural mail carriers to the union. Answering the contention of several delegates that every effort should be made to line these workers up with their fellows in the service, the chairman of the Centra! Committee explained the opposition of the committee as follows:

Not of the Proletariat. First, the country postmen generally arc si/all peasants who cannot be really considered as members of the proletariat. Second, the wages of rural carriers are so very low that if these men were admitted they would immediately demand an increase. Under existing conditions the Slate could not consent to this, and, consequently, the union would not be able to support such a request, and its refusal undoubtedly would occasion discontent among the carriers.

The convention took no action in the matter.