THE RED FEDERATION.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXIV, Issue 1041, 19 December 1912, Page 3

THE RED FEDERATION.

ITS FOUR YEARS HISTORY

defeated and dis CREDITED.

The Federation of Labour has been in existence a little over four years, and its record, when it deemed action necessary, has been one of complete failure (states a writer in the Auckland Herald). It came into existence in 1908 as a federation of miners.

In February of that year, after the Blackball strike was over some of the members of the union were dismissed, including Messrs P. H. Hickey and P. C. Webb. About that time Mr R. Semple came from Australia, and settled on the West Coast. Mr Hickey had visited America, and came back imbued with the doctrines of the Independent Workers of the World, and he and Mr Webb are said to have converted Mr Semple. The trio immediately set to work to form a federation of West Coast miners’ unions. It is interesting to note, however, that at this time there was no talk of 1.W.W.-ism. A conference of delegates of the unions was called in the early part of 1908, and Messrs Hickey, Semple and Webb succeeded in forming the Federation of West Coast Miners. There was no talk of a general strike at that time, although the constitution adopted was formed on the constitution of the Western Federation of Miners in America, the moving spirit of which was Mr William D. Hayward, one of the leaders of 1.W.W.-ism in America. , After the formation of the Federation of West Coast Miners, the executive sent out a circular to all mining unions in New Zealand, asking them, if favourable, to send delegates to a coutereuce to be held at Wellington in October, 190 S. The Thames and Otago unions were not represented at that couJerence, at which the New Zealand Miners’ Federation was formed, and Mr Semple was elected president.

Ou 18th October, 1909, a second conference was held in Wellington, aud the title of the New Zealand Federation of Labour was adopted. The Trades Councils at the time were moving in the direction of forming a Federation of Labour along political lines, but they were forestalled, and the name was registered by the miners’ organisation, although It was even theu only a federation ot miners. Mr Semple was appointed organiser, aud Mr Webb president. A new constitution was adopted, providing for political action, aud clause 2, of rule 2, in the constitution, gave the Federation power to admit any bona fide labour body, provided that there was uo federation of the particular industry in which the members were engaged. The Federation had now grown strong, aud included in its ranks all the miners’ unions in New Zealand, except the Thames Union, BEGINNING OR I.W.W, METHODS. Between iSth October, 1909, and August, 1910, the State miners’ strike was engineered by the Federation, aud the latter also sent .£3,000 to assist the strikers, led by Mr Peter Bowling, in Australia.

lu August, 1910, a thitd coufereuce was held in Wellington. Having prevailed on several additional utrons to join the Federation now began to show its hand, and the constitution was remodelled on I,WAV. lines, and political action was eliminated. Clause 2 of rule 2 was also eliminated, and a clause substituted, empowering the Federation to take in individual unions belonging to any other federation. This resulted in the smashing of the Waterside Workers’ Federation.

PROPAGANDA WORK HEARING FRUIT. The two years of propaganda work carried ou by the Federation of Labour now began to bear fruit. In quick succession, many large and influential unions decided to ioin the ranks of the “militant” army. These included the Manavvatu Flaxmillers’ Uuion, the Auckland and Canterbury Labourers’ Unions, the Auckland Tramways Union and the Auckland, Wellington, Lyttelton, Nelson, Westport, Timaru, Patea, Dunedin and other Waterside Workers’ Unions. In fact, the Federation made great headway, while merely organising, without putting I.W.W. tactics into practice, the majority of the unions not being conversant with the doctrines of the sofdlcd Federation ol Labour. The Federation now became aggressive, and in the general labourers’ strike in February of this year-endeavoured to force au agreement upon the employers. On-behalf of the local bodies in Auckland, the Mayor (Mr C. J. Parr) definitely slated that no agreement would be recognised Unless ratified unde? the Arbitration Act. A bitter fight ensued, and culminated in some of the Federation leaders rudely disturbing a meeting of employers convened hy the Mayor, These leaders had to leave the room, but as they did so one of them, in a threatening way, said to the Mayor ; “I will deal with you later.” The Federation supported a candidate at the Mayoral election in the city in April last against Mr Parr, who, however, was returned by au overwhelming majority. This was the first serious setback that the Federation had received, but the lesson was quickly forgotten by the leaders, THE FUEE I.W.W. PLATFORM. At the conference in May, 19U, the leaders felt sufficiently sure of

their position to adopt the I.W.W. plaltorm in full; they apparently considered the lime bad come to make a determined effort to wipe out the Arbitration Act. This was the beginning of the end. According to the preamble ot the constitution, “the working class and the employing class have no-

thing in common, . . Between the two classes a struggle must go on until the workers of the world organise as a class, take possession of the earth and the machinery of production, and abolish the wage

system, • . By organising industrially, we are forming the structure of the new society within the shell of the old.’’ In the light of the I.W.W. philosophy, the Federation set out frankly^to smash the Arbitration Act. The supporters of the I.W.W. doctrines obtained the control of the Federation although a large proportion of the members of the affiliated unions were unquestionably in favour of arbitration aud legal agreements with the employers. THR WAIHI STRIKR. Then came the Waihi strike ou 13th May of this year. The engiuedrivers at Waihi had formed an Arbitration union, and the Federation endeavoured to coerce the employers into intimidating the Arbitrationisls. Failing in this, the strike was declared. From the start the strike was foredoomed to failure. Union after uuiou severed its connection with the Federation during the months the Waihi strike continued. Trump cards during the strike were promised in abundance, but they were never played until the fateful gelignite and shooting outrages, which roused the righteous indignation of the workers at Waihi, and ended the rule of the Federaliouists in that industrial centre.

RKBUI'TS ALL ROUND. The Federation has been hopelessly beaten at Huntly in the past few mouths. The General Labourers’ and Auckland Tramway’s Uuiou have left its fold in disgust, and a big section of the Auckland Watersiders are antagonistic to the Federation, while the Wellington Waterside Workers are demanding secession from the discredited and hopelessly defeated body. It can safely be said that the Federation is now practically dead as far as the North Island is concerned.

In the South Island (concludes the Herald’s article) the feeling against the Federation is also strong. At Reeftou it suffered a crushing defeat. The Otago coalminers broke away in July last and formed an arbitration union. Subsequently the Kaitaugata uuiou broke away aud the Federation sympathisers went to the West Coast. Practically the West Coast is now the only stronghold of the Federation, and it is expected that the leaders will confine their attention to that district.