Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1920. INDUSTRIAL STORM CLOUD.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLII, Issue 2184, 2 October 1920, Page 2

Manawatu Herald SATURDAY, OCTOBER 2, 1920. INDUSTRIAL STORM CLOUD.

THE spirit of industrial unrest is in the air. Auckland is in a bad way owing to the 1 iambic in the coal mines. The (rams have ceased to run, and the gas supply has been cut off, thus throwing a large number of people out of employment. The shortage of coal from the northern mines is due to a disagreement between the miners and owners. The latter demand that employees working tlie pumps and engines at the mines should belong to the engine union, and not the coal miners’ union. At present they are members ot the hitler union. While this point is being debated Die pnhlie are eompelled to suffer. There is also a hold-up of shipping at Wellington, (he result of a tin-pot disagreement between the walersiders and ship owners in reference to the unloading of a small vessel. Referring to this latter trouble, the Post remarks: —“it seems that the men who, because of wet weather, balloted themselves oat of a job on the s.s. Calm, are under the rules not barred, as individuals, to return to work on the Calm, But that point does not seem to alVeet in the least the ohliga'lion of the waterside workers in general to provide workers for the Calm when la hour fur that ship is called for. The employers say in effect : ‘if you don't work the Calm, you shall not work any ship except' such ships (the ferry steamers) as we choose to let you work.’ The walersiders in effect retort: ‘You are not entitled to establish a preference ship; and even if you are, you are not entitled, in absence of labour for that ship, to lock the workers out; and even if you are, you cannot establish a differentiating or discrimina I ing lockout; and in any ease,.don't send us ultimatums, or we won't work.’ At this stage the only important point is the first-—the preference ship. So far, the Lost can discover nothing in the agreement to prevent the preference ship practice! that is, the practice of insisting on the manning of one ship as conditional to the working of others); hut, in order to gel away from the atmosphere ot bush law that is developing, and that tends to complicate and distort a few simple facts from '■which stoppage of work should never have arisen, the Post suggests a reconsideration of the position, Surely the resources of conciliation are not exhausted, and an unnecessary stoppage will not be perpetuated by wrangling on points not immediately relevant.’’ On the top of this there is constant trouble in working the W est Coast mines, and the coal shortage is causing anxiety and loss in many centres. There is something behind all this unrest which sooner or later must end in open rupture. It appears as if we are on the edge of a big industrial upheaval, which may lead to disastrous results unless the contending parties are brought together to settle their industrial differences in a spirit of sweet reasonableness, in view of the militant spirit displayed by extreme Labour leaders this does not seem probable.