Co-operative Workers.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 1, Issue 4, 15 December 1910, Page 3 (Supplement)

Co-operative Workers.

A ROYAL COMMISSION

REQUESTED

Mr H. A. Campbell has handed the three following letters (which speak for themselves), to " The Maoriland Worker ' :—

" Ballast Pit. Cass, Midland Railway, November, 1910. The Hon Minister of Public Works.

Sir, —We have for months past been employed working the steam navvy. We clean the steam navvy out, and effect repairs on Sundays. All we get for Sunday work is time and a half. We have on several occasions seen a gang of navvies doing their usual work on Sundays.——Yours faithfully,

(Signed by four co-operative workers.)

" Ballast Pit, Cass, November, 1910 The Hon Minister of Public Works.

Sir, —We, the undersigned co-opera-tive labourers, working in the ballast-

pit at Case, desire to inform you that the statement you made in the House of Parliament that no work is carried out in the ballast pit on Sunday, except cleaning out the steam navvy and effecting repairs, is absolutely untrue. It is a common practice to break down ballast, fill trucks and put down a railway line on Sunday. For Sunday work we only receive Is 6d per hour. "We are to-day (Sunday) employed at our usual work.—-Yours faithfully,

(Signed by five co-operative workers.)

" Cass, November 9, 1910. The Hon R. M'Kenzie, Minister of Public Works.

Sir, —We, the undersigned co-opera-tive workers of Caes, beg to inform you that the statement you made in the House of Parliament about our treatment is absolutely untrue, and it has left a false impression in the minds of the people of this dominion. Your official inquiry into our case has been a farce. We would most respectfully ask you, Sir, to appoint a Reyal Commission to inquire into the whole cooperative system and its administration. Nothing less than an impartial inquiry by men outside of the Public Works Department will satisfy us.— Yours respectfully,

(Signed by 121 co-operative workers.")

Later on the following message came through the Press Association, fr3m Wellington :—" "Rocontly complaints

appeared in a Christchurch paper of the conditions under which co-opera-tive labour was conducted on the Broken River-—Cass line. The Minister of Public Works (the Hon. R. McKenzie) gave a general denial to the statement. Since then letters and interviews have appeared in the Christchurch papers affirming that the conditions are not good, and that the men had to work on Sundays, and that their tents were not fit to live in. Mr Davey asked the Minister to-day if he had any fiirther information on the point. Mr McKenzie said he had no further report. The tents supplied to the men were of the same class as were supplied in other parts of the Dominion. He proposed to send some one shortly to enquire into the conditions on these works." A vigorous correspondence was conducted in the " Lyttelton Times" by Mr Campbell, and the reality of the grievances clearly demonstrated. Whether or not the enquiry to be made by " some one" will be any more satisfactory than the previous ones, remains to be seen. In "Westport recently a public meeting was also held to protest against the small wages paid the men working on the Westport—lnangahua Junction, and it was resolved : " That owing to the unsatisfactory way in which railway construction in this district has been carried on under the cooperative system, this meeting urges the Government to carry on railway construction in this district by day wages at 10/- a day." It was also resolved to send a copy of the resolution to the members for Buller, Grey and the Minister of Public Works..

Replies were received., and a meeting held on November 24th, when the following motions were passed unanimously : — 1. "That the Hon. the Minister - of Public Works be written to in reply to his wire of the 19th inst., pointing out that the standard rate in this district is 10/- per day, and asking that 10/----per day be paid for all unskilled labour on wages, and co-operative work on the basis of a minimum of 10/- per day." 2. " That this meeting would respectfully ask that 9/6 be paid from the date it was promised to Westport men.''

On December 3 Mr. Campbell received a reply from the Minister of Public Works., saying that a Departmental officer would enquire into grievances very shortly.