N.Z. CONFERENCE ON INDUSTRY ADVOCATED

Grey River Argus, 7 August 1948, Page 5

N.Z. CONFERENCE ON INDUSTRY ADVOCATED

By Legislative Council P.A. WELLINGTON, August 6. I The Legislative Council to-dav passed a motion, moved by Hon. T. O. I Bishop (Lower Hutt) that consideration should be given by the Government to the advisability of calling a national industrial conference to examine industrial legislation of the Dominion, and suggest amendments or additions, with the ultimate object of improving industrial relations. The Note was carried on the voices, with two dissentients. “Even if the conference which is suggested should not be a complete success, in my opinion it could do nothing but good”, said Hon. F. G. Young (Auckland). “It could consider defects of the present industrial machinery”. Regarding the long delay to the settling of an award for the hospital workers, Mr Young said that, possibly, some of those workers who were prone to take industrial action every time they had a little grievance would have taken a grim view had the hospital workers taken action with the result that the wives and children of those militant unionists could not ha*e obtained hospitalisation. “If workers and their wives and families were refused hospitalisation, they would not like it any more than hosnital workers like to be refused fuel and gas for their families”, said Mr Young. “Each of us is dependent on the other . I think that there are some organisations in this country that have somewhat irresponsible leadership”, he said. “There is really no easv method of disciplining the more militant workers”. said Mr Young. “If we use coercion or force. I believe that workers who were intimidated and coerced would get such support among their fellow trade unionists that it might lead to a general strike, and a general strike, in my opinion, is civil war”.

“However presumptive waterside workers are, we should be glad that they are not as arrogant or dictatnrial as the medical fraternitv”, said Mi? Young. “I think it might be considered that any person who holds office in a trade union shduld be required to make a declaration that he is not a Nazi, Fascist, or Communist, and that he upholds constitutional authority”. ~ . Hon. W. Black (Nelson) said that nothing was more important than that the people should be kept at work. If a- Government was so weak that it could not deal with the question of industrial relationships, could a conference do anything to assist? Hon. J. Roberts (Wellington) said that industrial disputes, too often, were the handiwork of political propaganda, and that should not be allowed. Mr Roberts said that the time had arrived when the worker would have representation, in the running of industry, and if the confeience came to a decision giving the workers some representation in management, that would give the workers responsibility.