The Hokitika Guardian WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1922 INTERNATION LABOUR CONFERENCE.

Hokitika Guardian, 1 February 1922, Page 2

The Hokitika Guardian WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 1, 1922 INTERNATION LABOUR CONFERENCE.

The third International Labour Conference, held in accordance with the provisions of the Peace Treaty and attended by delegates representing the ,States, employers and; workers concerned concluded its sittings at Geneva in November. By common consent good results have been geourad. Writing in the Times on the work of the Conference, Sir Montague Barlow M.P., Parliamentary Secretary, Ministry of Labour, the senior British delegate, considers that its gjreat achievement were obiviouisly serious, and, furthermore, big financial and international interests were in issue, much money having been sunk in the lead industry in some countries and in the production of zinc substitutes in others. The attitude of Great Britain throughout the discussion by the Conference wag neutral, as a Home Office Committee had previously been set up to re-consider the whole matter. 1 Dr Legge, the Senior Medical Inspector of Factories of the Home Office, a British delegate whose experience and impartiality received recognition on all sides, strongly urged the necessity for a compromise of a kind p hich would be satisfactory to all con- {

cerned. Shortly the compromise accepted unanimously by the Conference was on the following lines: —For intornal painting of buildings (except , railway stations and industrial estab- , lishments) the use of white lead to be entirely prohibited after 'six jyOfiltb, but its us® in external painting to j be allowed subject to proper regain- j tions. Several recommendations and even conventions were adopted on agriculture, their general object being to extend to agricultural workers privileges already secured for the workers in factories, but any suggestion of limiting the working day in agriculture , was eliminated. On anthrax the pro- ; posed convention was by agreement j held up, and the governing body of j the International Labor Office fs to j summon a, committee repreteemtativie I of States concerned, such as Franco, | India, Australia etc., which it is sug- j gested should meet in London and the j British Government be asked to nomi- j nate the chairman. A convention was also voted, adopting the principle of a weekly restday in industry. Each country to make its own list of exceptions and forward these to Geneva. It was unfortunate, writes Sir Montague, that a clause enforcing compensatory periods of rest was inserted in the draft. This, in the light of British experience, would prove difficult to work in practice, and in consequence the Convention did not receive British support. A suggestion was made of alternate large and small conferences in alternate years, the lesser conference to discuss and prepare the agenda with a view to the fuller Conference the year after, but continental workers were insistent that , by a delay in carrying out the industrial policy outlined in the. Peace Treaty, there was a risk that the La- . I,or organisation might fail to retain j the support of the workers. The question of adequate representation of nonEuropean States was again raised, and further proposals will probably he pressed before long for revising article 393 of the Treaty and increasing the size of the governing body, which at j present is limited to twenty four, twelve members representing States, six employers and six workers. The next Conference which is to be held in October, 1922, will elect a governing body to hold office for the next three years