Manawatu Herald TUESDAY, JULY 4, 1922. PREFERENCE TO UNIONISTS.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XLIV, Issue 2449, 4 July 1922, Page 2

Manawatu Herald TUESDAY, JULY 4, 1922. PREFERENCE TO UNIONISTS.

THE Farmers’ Union throughout the Dominion are making a big bid for the abolition of preference to unionists. Mr Poison, president of the N.Z. Farmers’ Union, at the annual meeting at Auckland recently said: “Preference to unionists was considered a pernicious thing. Labour unionism was a very different thing from the Farmers’ Union movement. The farmers endeavoured to get everybody in and to have all enjoy the benefits to be obtained. Labour unionism aimed at keeping the other fellow out and reserving the benefits for a few. We are out to see it abolished, to see it wiped off the Statute Book,” said Mr Poison in conclusion. “Industrial Tramp,” in the Auckland Star, commenting on the statement, says: “Mr Poison has a very imperfect acquaintance with his subject when he infers that a labour union is a close corporation. The granting of preference in every award is granted only on condition that the union is thrown open to any worker ‘on payment of an entrance fee not exceeding 5/-, and a subsequent contribution not exceeding fid per week, on a written application, without ballot or election.’ The union cannot make a close corporation under these conditions, and it becomes an utter impossibility to ‘keep the other fellow out,’ to 'use the language of the Dominion president. In the skilled trades this ‘open door’ is often the cause of much trouble with employers, who complain that being a union member is no guarantee of a man’s ability to earn the wages.” “Veteran” points out in the Dunedin Star, that in the early days of the Arbitration Act the preference clause generally made provision that persons seeking to join the union in a skilled trade must be competent journeymen. The following is an extract from the Dunedin boilermakers’ award, August 1901: —“So long as the rules of the union permit any person of good character and sober habits and a competent tradesman to become a member on payment of an entrance fee not exceeding 5/- . . . . the employers shall employ members of the union in preference to non-members, provided there are members of the union equally qualified with non-members to perform the particular work.” There are dozens of awards containing similar clauses. Some recent awards have even more stringent preference clauses. "Veteran” takes “Industrial Tramp" to task for stating that preference is granted only on condition that the union is thrown open to any worker, and reminds him that they must bo competent tradesmen. Many employers complain that the union cannot guarantee that their members are competent tradesmen. “Veteran" thinks there should not be much difficulty about the matter if the employers would assist the unions; and some of them are willing to assist. There are unions that insist that before a new member can join he must prove that he is a competent tradesman. The Star’s contributor says he has” seen a letter from the president of one employers’ union thanking the members of the workers’ union for their action in this matter. He thinks that if this plan were carried out in all skilled trades it should not be long before only competent journeymen were employed. That would do away with one objection to preference.