A New Federation.

Hokitika Guardian, 19 September 1922, Page 4

A New Federation.

WELLINGTON, September 15

With the object of ultimately securing uniformity in the matter of awards in various trades affected, a movement is on foot for the establishment of a Dominion Building Trades’ Federation.

A certain amount of difficulty has been encountered in overcoming local prejudices, but the scheme is reported to bo making progress. District councils have been set up in Wellington, A lick- ; land, Christchurch and Dunedin. Ne- | gotiations are now in train for tho for- • mation of a national council, with head- ■ quarters in Wellington, on which' will bo representatives of different building • trades, such as carpenters, plumbers, I bricklayrs, plasterers, painters, build- ; iug trades’ labourers, etc. When the ' new federation becomes an actual fact

it will be one of the largest industrial organisations of its kind in New" Zealand.

It- is believed that the next step to follow will be affiliation with tho Alliance of Labour. The constitution of the Allinnc provides for organisation along the lines of industry. It is im possible for a purely craft federation such as tho Paintors’s Federation or tho Carpenters and Joiners’ Society, to be linked up with its scheme of industrial departments as separate entries. Before affiliation with the Alliance can be obtained it is first of all necessary that an allied trades in a particular industry shall be associated in a Do-

minion federation. Tho organisation of the Alliunco of Labour embraces a number of different departments, tho transport workers’ department, for instance, includes drivers, seamen, the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants, and tramway-men. With the affiliation of the new building trades federation in tho building departmenttho strength of the Alliance will he considerably augmented numerically.

Up to the present registration of the Building Trades’ Federation has been refused by the Labour Department on the ground that the workers in the re speetivc building trades have federations of their own crafts, to which they can belong. Officials of the federat’on

point out, however, tlint they are not eery concerned with this point just now, -is they are anxious to perfect <l‘tails of organisation as the first step to the ideal of obtaining a uniform set of wages Ibr the various classes of trades men involved.