The Employers' Association

Maoriland Worker, Volume I, Issue 1, 15 September 1910, Page 9

The Employers' Association

A Criticism.

(By J. A. M'CULLOUGH.) T have often been appalled by the ignorance of economic and industrial questions displayed by workers, and have regretted that efforts were not made by our trades unions to remedy the defects in our public school curriculum. A knowledge of political economy and industrial history is becoming every year more and. more essential. Now, I am free to admit that there is justification for workers remaining ignorant, seeing that so large a number of them can never hope to get out of the deadly rut in which they find themselves, that of wage-earners The lucky ones among them become tradesmen, the unlucky remaining labourers. But, having said this so far as wage-earners are concerned, what excuse can be offered for the lamentable displays of ignorance by our "captains of industry"? These displays are made periodically by our various Employers' Associations at their quarterly meetings, and the newspapers are used to the fullest extent to give publicity to these silly vapourings of incompetency. I have often wondered whether it is the paid secretaries of the various organisations who are responsible, and whether it is considered a part of their duty to have ten and ready f,or delivery copies of the president's address and the few remarks which are usually indulged in by the officers. If this be the explanation, then one can only express the hope that the employers would send the various secretaries along to some public institution where information could be gained on economic and industrial problems. It is, of course, too much to expect the "captains of industry"— busy men that they are—to devote any time to a subject that cannot be guaranteed to return a fair percentage of profit on the time expended ! I am led to make these remarks after reading the report of the annual meeting of the Canterbury Employers' Association, held on Wednesday, the 18th August. Some seven of the " big guns " fired off their shots. It would be quite impossible to refer in detail to a tithe of the misstatements, misrepresentations and false innuendos against the workers made by these seven individuals ; but I am quite certain that no seven representative workers could be found so careless of their facts, so reckless with their figures, and having the effrontery to pose as teachers whilst having so little information at their disposal as the aforementioned seven " captains of indiistry." The report states: "The meeting was preceded by a tea." It may have been the exhilarating effect of the tea which contributed to the usual flow of exuberant verbosity and induced our said business men to imagine themselves especially qualified to teach our legislators their business ; to advise " the body politic of its blunders," and "the Press to point out that there was a struggle, and that they could not expect it to be always easy, and that the right thing to do was frequently unpleasant." Mr Hallenstein (the chairman), in opening, said: " For the first time, he believed, for many years, a number of employers had had to reduce their working staff " ; but " he was happy to say there had been an increase in the income of the Association." I suppose the connection between the dismissals and the contributions is obvious that, now the employers do not have to keep so many workers, they can afford to contribute more to the funds of the Association. Mr Hallenstein pleaded for " perfect rest from so-called industrial disputes and fresh labour legislation," and strength was given to his appeal by figures given by the Labour Department, viz : " that at least 50 per cent of the workers in manufacturing industries were paid higher waeces than the minimum rates fixed by the Arbitration Court." The Labour Department do not make this claim. I admit: but what their object could have been in sending out figures so obviously incomplete lends colour to the suggestion that they were prepared to the order of the Employers' Federation. Let us examine some of the figures. Take the bootmaking industry : The minimum wage for this trade is 45s per week for males and 25s for females. The figures cover a total of 1236 persons and show that in Auckland City 74 per cent earn more than the minimum, in Wellington 87 per cent, in Christenurch 79f per cent, and in Dunedin 81 per cent. But as the figures only deal with 1236 persons, while the Department gives a total of 3341 persons as being engaged in the industry, I ask : What value are the figures as a comparison of the wages paid, seeing that 2145 persons are left out of the computation ? In the tailoring and clothing manufacturing (Mr TTallenstein's own industry) the Department's

figures give the wages paid to 1315 persons, showing that 42 per cent in Auckland and up to 80 per cent in Wellington get more than the minimum. Up against these figures you have the fact that there are 7317 persons engaged in the industry, or 6002 whose wages are not given, and it will not be contended that these 6002 are incompetent workers or boys and girls. A further point is that if the minimum wage be 455, and a worker receives 45s 6d per week, he is classed as having received over the minimum wage. Foremen and shop managers, etc., are also included ! However, space forbids further discussion of these interesting figures, and I will conclude with one other instance, viz., tinsmithing. Figures are given only for Wellington and Dunedin. The latter is credited with having only fourteen tinsmiths, and all of them getting over the minimum ! I know personally that there are over thirty tinsmiths in IXinedin. In Wellington thirty is the number given, and 77 per cent are stated to be getting over the minimum of 9s per day. This is an old award made in 1902, and is Is per day less than the award in Auckland and Christchurch, where the percentages are not given. Further analysis of these figures would prove them to be fully as unreliable as the instances given, and, with all due respect to the Labour Department and to Mr Hallenstein, I have no hesitation in saying that they are worse than useless. One could pireach a sermon on the remark of Mr Booth : " That manufacturers were barely holding their own in this dominion year by year, while everyone but the local manufacturer was growing rich." There are at present 701 pei*sons engaged in the business of agricultural implement making, against 355 in. 1905, an increase of 346 persons. Mr Booth's profits from this portion of his business should be increased, unless competition has robbed him of his share of it. In the engineering trade, in 1905, 1240 persons were engaged in the industry; now there are 4294, an increase of 3054 persons. I am generous enough to hope that Mr Booth's staff has increased in like proportion. If it has, he should not growl; and if it has not, he should not growl either, for is he not a believer in free competition? And ought to be "willing to take his gruel like a man, and not whine, as he is in the habit of doing at the quarterly meetings of his Association? Of one thing I am certain: Mr Booth's workmen are not among the " everyone " mentioned by him as " growing rich." But really space and patience both forbid mention of the very many fallacious, exploded and moth-eaten platitudes indulged in by several of the speakers—Mr Acland in particular! Many flaxmills, especially in Blenheim, were closed on account of Arbitration Court awards, and the manual workers must seek employment elsewhere, said Mr Acland. There is no flaxmilling award in Blenheim at all, and Mr Acland therefore made a statement wilfully ignorant or wilfully untrue, and in either case deserved the severest censure. Instead, the conscientious " captains of industry " elevated him to the responsible position of vice-president, where no doubt they hope the qualities referred to above will be of service to their cause.