A SUGGESTION FOR REASONABLE TRADES UNIONS.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1912, 21 November 1913, Page 9

A SUGGESTION FOR REASONABLE TRADES UNIONS.

Sir,—l. take the liberty of eontribntiiig another to the ninny letters you havo. received ■concerning the strike, The present state of affairs has revealed to the public a deplorable state of dis- - organisation and chaos amongst the 3 various .trades and labour, unions* "What D is the Red Moderation: of Labour? What f is the United Labour Party? Are these 1 political unions of workers, or .lire they 3 political unions bossing the trade's 3 Unions A trade union is necessary ' to protect the interests of the me'm--3 hers engaged in that trade. Similarly-, s a union is necessary to protect the interests of labourers and others employed oh wages. Let these unions be- coii- ' stituted on a systematic footing with a paid.public servant to administer the: • alfairs and' advise the executive, which > would bo fleeted by the .members them- ■ selves. This should be undertaken by [ the LaboTir Department, one seeretary. i doing -duty for several unions. If the ' workers wish to form a political organisation let them do so—it is a free country— but a law should be passed making interference by political organisations > 1 with trades add labour unions illegal. A good deal of tact and common sense ■ is necessary for officials dealing with unskilled labour. Most of the men'being rattier the reverse of intellectual do not stop to reason things out for themselves, but follow blindly the leaf) given by some fluent orator who has A li'ving to make. Tim lack of individuality and -wholesale ignorance account a good deal for the foolish attitude the 1 majority of the workers adopt towards their employers and should bo met by sympathetic- caiisideration and firm-noss rather than rigid am, etc, SYSTEM.