Government Will Fearlessly Control Industry

Manawatu Times, Volume 69, Issue 59, 13 March 1944, Page 4

Government Will Fearlessly Control Industry

(By Telegraph—Press Assn.—Copyright. J Received Sunday, 7.30 p.m. SYDNEY, March 12. Coal strikers are now outlawed in Australia as the result of special Commonwealth regulations gazetted by tho Federal Attorney-General (Dr. Evatt). The regulations take from miners tho right to strike even with the approval of the Miners’ Federation executive. From now on every Australian coal miner absenting himself from work must have a reasonable excuse for doing so. No miner may cease work on the ground that the Miners’ Federation has authorised a stoppage. Previously stoppages would be authorised by a “duly constituted covering body of the organisation of employees.” This provision as applied to the Miners*, Federation has now been repealed. More than a thousand miners and their wives applauded Dr. Evatt when he made an empassioned appeal for peace on the New South Wales coalfields at the opening of the Cessnock show. In frank words he told tho miners that from now on the Federal Government would fearlessly control the industry. A long burst of applause followed the earnest reception of Dr. Evatt’s address during which he waved his closed fist at the audience, often shouting until his voice broke. Dr. Evatt warned the miners that they were rapidly losing all public, union and Government sympathy, destroying their hopes of postwar economic security aud jeopardising the lives of Australian soldiers. Declaring that 2,000,000 tons of coal had been lost in the past 12 months in a succession of “miserable” strikes, none of which had involved a single principle, Dr. Evatt said the Australian Government had to refuse pleas for coal from South America, India and New Zealand. It had been impossible to send urgently-needed coal to New Zealand since last June.