LABOR NOTES.

Gisborne Times, Volume XXVII, Issue 2544, 3 July 1909, Page 7

LABOR NOTES.

A-J (By Unionist.) Trade is without doubt very bad jin •Christchurch, but it is very much worse in Wellington, and every class of work- j er is feeling the pinch.. In one care in the woodworking trade a firm that was employing over forty hands, this time last year has shut down altogether. In the . painting*'trade alone there are close on forty out of work. Lately we were made acquainted with the fact that, included in the lonic’s passengers at 'Wellington were twenty-seven domestics, who came out under the auspices of the British Emigration Society to fill situations provided by a syndicate of Hawke’s Bay •ladies, which paid the passage money, each girl to repay in instalments the amount expended on her behalf. Tho next batch of domestics will arrive in October. Work in every branch of industry in .Auckland at tho present time is scarce and hard to get. What with tho rough Aveather lately prevalent, high rents, and _ the cost of living, there having been a considerable rise in the price of bread of late,, the lot of the casual worker is very hard just noAv, and the skilled artisan is very little better off either. Referring to the unemployed question in Christchurch, the' ‘‘Lyttelton Times” is of opinion that if employment could be found for the tradesmen who cannot undertake navvyirig or general laborers’ work, there Avould be very little cause for serious complaint. Delegates to 1 the recent Cooks’ and Waiters’ Conference, in Wellington, all express themselves as satisfied with the scheme of federation proposed. The draft constitution tentatively .agreed to by the delegates needs only ratification by tho represented unions, when the association xvill be immediately registered. It is three years now since the first* union was formed, and the fact that in such a short time the other centres have been organised and the federation practically accomplished, was a matter of mutual congratulation between all delegates on the conference. At the close of the financial halfyear of tho Dunedin Trades’ Council there were thirty-one unions affiliated to it, with a membership of over two thousand.

In Kaitangata. Otago, there is a movement to form a workers’ co-oper-ative society. A strong committee is engaged in drawing up rules and organising the workers for support. The society intends commencing operations fey starting a co-operative butchery, and this is expected to take a practical shape shortly. Several attempts have been made in Auckland to form a cooperative society, but they have all ended in failure: the latest move in that direction is now being made by the Waterside Workers’. Union, who have sent out circulars proposing to start a co-operative bakery, in view of the present high price of bread. It is contended that when flour went up recently, the price of bread per loaf also went up; when the flour was reduced in ■price, the price of bread went down ■ in the South but remained 1 stationary in Auckland. Mr. Fowler, M.H.R. for Perth, has definitely announced his intention of leaving "the Labor Party, and standing as an Independent candidate next ’Federal election. A Bill providing for an eight-hours’ day for bakers is now before the House -of Commons. By agreement with the promotors of the measure, it was referred to a Select Committee of the House of Commons to report prior to the second reading. Immigrants are not at .present allowed to land in Cape Colony or Natal, or enter the Transvaal or Phodesia, unless they have secured definite employment in the colony or possess sufficient means of support. The Secretary of the Auckland Labor Day Celebration Committee, Mr. Geo. Davis, has issued circulars to the Auckland Unions, asking them to appoint delegates to the 1909 Labor Day Committee . The Auckland Grocers’ award expires on July 31st, and the Union Executive are well to the fore with an amended, set of working conditions. The Auckland Clerks’ Union, recently 'formed, is in a good way towards becoming one of the strong unions of Auckland. The hulk of the members are putting their hearts into the work, having got quite clear of that conservatism that generally surrounds clerks and shop assistants. During Mr. Cooper’s opening statement when conducting the bootmakers’ dispute before the -Arbitration Court, in Auckland recently. Judge Sim interjected: “Your claim means an increase of 33 l-3rd per cent. Yoii base that increase on the benefit received by the trade owing to the increased duty." Mr. Cooper replied: “Yes; the employers are benefiting to the extent of ' £70,000, and we ask for £20,000 of it. Adelaide ironmongers have 1 obtained an increase of wages to 10s per day, and the etrike is now over. In the Auckland butchers’ dispute, the Conciliation Board have granted this form of preference to unionists, which is much fairer than usually agreed upon:—“Throughout all the departments recognised by this a ward, preference of employment shall be given by employers to members of the Auckland Butchers’ Industrial Union of Workers. When a non-unionist workman is engaged by an employer in connf the, union bOmC UUabl'6 tO

supply a workman willing to undertake the work, at any time within twelve weeks thereafter the union shall have the right to supply a man capable of performing the work, providing the workman first engaged declines to become a member of the union. This provision shall also apply to those non-union men already employed.” The last clause especially is a long way better than the /clause usually allowed by the Arbitration Court. THE "WEEKLY DAY OF REST. Much has been written in reference to tlio question of a weekly day of rest. Without attempting to unduly labor the subject, one or two additional facts in connection therewith are worth chronicling. The section of the “Lord’s Dav Act" , of Canada which compels the weekly day of rest reads: “Except in cases of emergency, it shall not be lawful for any person to require any employee engaged in any work of receiving, transmitting, or delivering telegraph,.or telephone messages, or in the work of anv industrial process, or in the connection with transportation, to do on the Lord'# Day the usual work of his ordinary calling, unless such employee is allowed during the next six days of such week, ftwenty-four hours without labor.”' , a , Attention# is now being devoted to the advocacy of the innovation by Labor Politicians and others in Australia. Mr. M. .Fisher, late federal'Premier, made special mention of the matter in hi•* resignation sperrli in the Commonwifalth Parliament. He caid: —

“Surely honorable members will agree with me that this Parliament ought to have power to pass a law that will enable workers to have, one day off in seven..” mr . . , Then wo have our late Minister of Labor’s attitude. In reply to a depuj tation from the Cooks and Waiters’ Conference recently, Mr. Hogg acknowledged tho justness of, the demand, and promised to press for tho necessary legislation in Cabinet. And finally, to the great satisfaction of those keenly interested, there is tho private Bill which was introduced by Mr. Fisher, M.P., in the House in the recent short session. Mr. Fisher’s Bill is brief and to the point. There are but two vital clauses. Clause 3 reads: “Except in cases of emergency, it shall not be lawful for any person to require any employee to do on Sunday the usual work of his ordinary calling, unless such employee i§ allowed, during the next six days of such week, twenty-four consecutive hours without labor.” The other clause is a qualifying one, exempting domestic workers, and'workers engaged in relieving and assisting the sick, from the operation of the main section. The outcome of all this, and of prior agitation, according to omnions expressed in Union circles, will be the. accomplishment of a legislative weekly day of rest in New Zealand within a comparatively short space of time from now. It is argued that the Government cannot' repudiate the principle, and that a measure of its own .will supersede Mr. Fisher’s next session.