Parry's Story of the Strike

Maoriland Worker, Volume 2, Issue 75, 16 August 1912, Page 3

Parry's Story of the Strike

The Testimony of Facts.

A CLEAR EXPOSITION

- When in Wellington Mr. W. E. Parry told the story of the Waihi strike to an audience attentive to tho last word. THE BOYCOTT. Mr. Parry began by reminding his hearers that as the miners were being E charged with using tihe boycott,, it was well for those present to know that the associated wholesale merchants of Auckland had refused -to supply the union store at Waihi with goods, hoping thereby to down the men. a CONTRACT. Than tbe fight at Waihi a fight was 0 never moro justified, and the men wero j. going to win. The origin of the trouble, he said, dated back a considerable time. Under B tho contract system, formerly in vogue, V men would be employed by tender, aud employ about 15 wages men in connccr tion with it. On many occasions these wages men were sent into places that the contractors themselves were afraid to enter. It was decided, at a meeting of the men, to establish a co-opera-tivo system if possible. A delegation was senn to the company, who refused to permit the system. The contract system was responsible for the bad and dangerous conditions which prevailed, and under it the prices wero cut down to bedrock. FIRST BOSSES' UNION FAILS. When the men cancelled their registration, in order to make a proper stand against these conditions, the , mining company fostered a movement to form a new organisation under the Arbitration Act. A paper was circulated by the shift, bosses, requesting nil in favor of another organisation tv> subscribe their na,mes. The formation of that organisation was prevented. ENGINE-DRIVERS' EFFORTS. The dissentiing engine-drivers had made three attempts to form a union. They called meetings per advertisement on two occasions, and both attempts were nullified by the majority cf members of the craft, who voted down the ■ proposal. Then the dissenters had been circularised, no name being attached to the circulars. Thus the so-called Arbitration Union was formed. i The majority of the engine-drivers did not know anything of the meetinc, and ( wore not given a chance to say whether : the union should be formed or not. CENUINE UNIONISTS OUT FOR ! PROTECTION. , At the next general meeting of the £ Waihi Workers' Union th© matter was brought up by some engine-drivers, who i wanted to know what protection the ' union was going to give those enginedrivers who were loyal to the organisation. One man got up at that meeting and said that one of the engine-drivers knew for a certainty that a section of the engine-drivers had held not only one meeting, but two or three meetings with - the mine manager. . ENGINE-DRIVERS' REPRESENTATION. } Mr. Parry wished to mention that " the engine-drivers, according to their 7 numerical strength, had more represen- 'J tation on the Waihi Workers' Union than any other departa-eM, of the in- ? dustry. They had on. the local committejj^^^|HHL-,,-----_fSs iTprefentiug t'heoepartaenT ef " engine-drivers. So that the engine- * drivers had no fault or quarrel with c the organisation on that score. ° COMPANY'S ENCINE-DRIVERS. p All that the company required was to get the engine-drivers, and then it could work its sweet will in regard to r mines conditions and the abolition if s co-operative contract. Before the Workers' Union had acted c drastically it had tried to see the alleged arbitrationists, but correspond- V ence had been ignored and a deputation J refused a hearing. " The committee had next decided te n take a determined stand in regard to the union that had'been fostered by the . bosses and by nobody else. d After the runaway engine-drivers' J meeting those who had attended it wero £ met at the corner of the main street ' by one of the mine-managers. ARBITRATION AND AGREEMENTS. '!'. Mr. Parry was most illuminating in his recital of the effects at Waihi to s' secure improved ventilation, and in re- ri spect of the cost to the Workers' Union If of arbitration and arbitration's com- tl parative worthlessness. Action on the p job had established co-operative con- s< tract and gained other advantages. _< In the matter of agreements, the ti first per arbitration had cost the union d £1000. When the union had finally can- € < celled registration and got a better [\ ae*reement in its own strength, Mr. Barry, mine superintendent, had given & Mr. Semple to understand that no other n union than the Workers' Union would be acknowledged, seeing that the t< union made provision for workers in all r < departments. jTHE REEFTON FIGHT. s; Passing on to deal with Rwfton, the n speaker said that the fight around contract had resulted in a union of 11,000 P dwindling down to 560 because of o1 wholesale dismissals. Ostensibly tho P lock-out had come about over the popper drill, but the company was now tl proposing to put before the arbitrators °' the question of contract also. THE CRUX OF THE MATTER. ™ Ati both Waihi and Reefton the men were fighting for right of organisation and human life. If the Federation Tl . unions were broken through it would w mean the return of the old brutal con- P ditions. The women of Waihi wero more determined than the men. Those concerned j_ : in the strike were not complaining w very much. During the 10 weeks of S] the strike there had not been one X case before the Magistrate's Court. He c < was satisfied they were going to win the fight. He had said at the start that they were going to win, and they were j winning all along the line. (Cheers.) -