THINGS MOVING IN SYDNEY

Industrial Unionist, Volume 1, Issue 10, 1 November 1913, Page 4

THINGS MOVING IN SYDNEY

Sydney, September, 1913. The local, due to its progress, has engaged Fellow-Worker King, from Broken Hill, to be organiser here. Good propaganda meetings have been held in the open air, and several have been held in our hall.

At one of the latter meetings Professor Irvine, who is lecturer on economics at the Sydney University, gave a lecture on social progress. The lecturer, during his address, criticised the gospel of Lazzes Faire, which was enunciated by Adam Smith, and the early 19th century economists. And depreciated the act of certain sections of the community making Bibles from the writings of certain ecenomists; and said the Socialists were not the exception to the rule.

He further pointed out that the interests of the dominant class have governed, and govern society, and immediately their interests are challenged the dominant class will do all in their power to prevent any encroachment by the class whose interests are opposed to theirs.

Yet the lecturer (of course) was in favour of co-operation of the worker with the capitalist. Questions and discussion followed, during which Fellow-Worker King urged and explained industrial unionism as the only weapon for the emancipation of the working class. A great deal has been reported in the capitalist press re wharf labourers’ strike, and the part the I.W.W. had played in trying to bring about a maritime upheaval. There are some 5,000 members of the Wharf Labourers’ Union, of whom from 50 to 50 per cent, are always looking for work on the wharves. For the past two years the average wage for the wharf labourers has been 30/- per week. Therefore certain demands were drawn up by the unionists, the most important of which was the limitation of three bags to the truck load. After these demands were enforced on two boats, a wages board was called, and a decision was come to by the employers and labour (fakirs) leaders, to set aside the original demands for certain so-called concessions. The most important and damnable one was that if there be a dispute between certain workers and a stevedore, the whole of the questions in dispute be referred to the employer or his representative, and their decision to be final. These so-called concessions were accepted by the Wharf Labourers’ Union, and an extra £1 a week was voted to the secretary for the services rendered to ; the (capitalist class) working class. So ended the memorable wharf labourers farce. Anyhow, the I.W.W. is well at work pointing out to the worker the necessity for Industrial Unionism. The local has decided upon having a monthly paper of its own, to be issued as soon as we can get a printer. The co-editors of this paper, which is to be called “ Direct Action,’' are

Fellow-Workers King and Glynn.— Tours for revolt, I.W.W. Press Committee.

October 11. The local union in this city is still busy disseminating seeds of “labour unrest.’’ We know tnat our efforts to make the slaves think have not been fruitless, for as we are brought, daily into contact with our fellow slaves we can observe that great numbers of the more intelligent sort are abandoning tneir old notions of unionism and are looking forward to tiie industrial Unionism that is destined to spring, sooner or later, from the present cfiaotic and cool so-called unionism, that has shown itself so absolutely powerless of late to figlit capitalism at the places of industrial activity. The various things taking place in the labour world go to show, without doubt, that new, true unionism is gradually forgeing its way forward. One not insignificant sign of this is the frosty fiasco of the eight hours’ day procession of Monday, October 6th, that is, so far as some of our craft unions were concerned. One union, out of a membership of several thousands, had only about twenty men marching in the procession. Besides this, there were a good percentage of the organisations that actually refused to their bosses the privilege oi making use of their respective banners for advertising jiurposes. A very successful meeting of this I.W.W. local was held at Bathurst Street, city, on “Labour Day,” as the daily press is pleased to phrase Oct. 6th, by Fellow-Worker De Valder and some others, of this local. There was no disturbance caused, as was anticipated, by us. We expected this trouble to come from a certain boozev element of Trade Hallers, but the meeting passed over with only a scanty sprinkling of interjections. Good meetings and sales of literature are reported by our propagandists for the past couple of weeks. Our local organiser, Fellow-Worker King, has visited several centres of work recently, and received good and impartial hearings. Everything in labour spheres seems to indicate that the strenuous efforts made by the I.W.W. here to point out the right road of emancipation to their fellow-slaves, have not been in vain. Several organisations have communicated with our secretary during the past week asking for information about the I.W.W. One union, the Australian Miners’ Association, asked for a supply of I.W.W. and Direct Action literature. So there is a a move one. —Yours for revolt, Press Committee.