OVERTIME.

Maoriland Worker, Volume 2, Issue 35, 3 November 1911, Page 17

OVERTIME.

Sir, —In your issue of October 5 I notice a letter by Mr. C. Parker on a very important question, viz., overtime. At the last meeting of the Westport Labor Union we carried a motion that this union discourage the working of overtime. Years ago in the Old Country I was working on a build- . ing; our hours were from 6 a.m. till 5 p.m. During summer we worked a quarter overtime till 7 p.m. One day we ran short of bricks, and the boss stopped us at 5 p.m. —only worked 10 hours that day. An old bricklayer became quite profane and used language, and said: "Only fancy, the boss has stopped us from working and the sun still shining—a d shame, I call it." Well, Sir, I maintain that no man has a right to work overtime as long as there is one man unemployed in the distract, unless in an emergency to save life or property. Unionists hate a scab, and rightly so. But let us put ourselves in the place of the unemployed. What would our_ feelings be on passing a job and seeing men in steady.work making overtime while we could not get a job, with perhaps a wife and children at home and neither money nor credit? I trust that I am a good unionist and Socialist too, but under those circumstances I should scab at the first opportunity. 'Yes, Sir, our own selfishness' breeds scabs, and don't you forget it. Therefore I say let us be. men and refuse to rob our brother man of a job by working overtime- —I am, etc. Westport. THOS. SALTER.