Cur Industrial Problems. 
Political Entanglement: 
The object of unionism should be in- 
dustrial harmony, and not, as is so often 
the case at present, of segregiting the 
classes. It should afford the op- 
portunity for any “man who wishes 
to join a body which holds out the pros- 
pect of mutual benefit to him. No man 
should be forced to join an organisation 
and subscribe to political views he does 
not hold. This is one of the greatest causes 
of the failure of unionism to-day. We are 
supposed to enjoy freedom second to none 
in the world, but there is no freedom for 
any man in Australia to-day who has to 
carn his living. He must submit to rules 
and regulations which entirely debar him 
from exercising his personal freedom in 
any shape or form. Unionism must break 
itself free and become non-political, and 
when that time comes, employers and em- 
ployees are goinu to meet ubon a common 
pround. 
Industrial Unionism. 
Another essential is the substitution of 
industrial unionism for craft organisa- 
tions. Let us take, as an example, the 
cailway industry. A Federal Arbitration 
Court Judge makes an award on the appli- 
cation of the Amalgamated Engineering 
Union and deals with a fitter employed by 
the Railway Department. Another makes 
an award applied for by the Railway Em- 
ployees’ Union in which a fitter is also 
provided for. The conditions of the two 
awards may be different, and often are, 
and the farcical position is reached of two 
men belonging to their respective unions 
working alongside but under different con- 
ditions. Further, to add to the complica~ 
tions, there is a Classification Board which 
works independently, giving another set of 
conditions for these very same men. 
The fixing of a wage based upon 
the cost of living is a false and an eco- 
nomically unsound method which retards 
the cheapening of cost of production. It 
makes the value of service in sheltered in- 
Jdustries entirely fictitious, the cost of pro. 
duction in secondary industries arbitrary, 
and the cost of primary production pro- 
hibitive. During times of scarcity, prices 
of commodities rise, and this is reflected in 
higher cost of living figures, which in turn 
increase wages. In times of depression this 
intensifies the cost of production, which 
further restricts sales, instead of stimulat- 
ing sales at cheaper prices, thus creating 
greater unemployment. There is no way 
in our industrial system whereby the 
periodical depression can be adjusted. Un- 
employment mn such periods of depression 
is inevitable, and is bound to increase un- 
loss some alteration is brought about. 
In many industries the limit of the 
“capacity to pay” has been reached, Mt. 
Morgan is ap example of work being un- 
rofitable, although there are eight mil- 
Fon tons of ore in sight, sufficient to keep 
a couple of thousand people employed for 
many years. - Our coal industry is another 
fostanee of where greatly inereased work 
29 
could be provided with more reasonable 
costs of productiop; 17,375 men in 1911 in 
New South Wales produced 500 tons each, 
valued at 7/3} per ton; and in 1925, 24,040 
men produced 474 tons, valued at 16/4 per 
ton. If the men produced in 1925 what 
they did in 1911, we should have had 
§27.668 tons more and the average value 
would have been 15/6, a saving of 103d. 
per ton, or nearly half a million pounds, 
sufficient money to pay 2.386 people with 
the current amount of wages. But, in- 
stead of this, the half a million had to be 
added to the cost of production. 
The primary producer does not escape 
entanglement in this unsound system of 
fixing wages, although it might be thought 
that his business would not be affected. 
[Pigures taken from the Commonwealth 
Year Book show that although the price 
of wheat (comparing 1926 with 1911) has 
increased 59 per cent., its purchasing power 
has decreased, resulting in wheat being 
actually 10 per cent. less in value than in 
1911; Until the purchasing power is in~ 
creased, the inereased current value is 
making it more diffienlt to nroduce bro- 
fitably. 
Freedom of Contract. 
One of the vital measures first of all 
must be the abolition of existing Wages 
Boards, Arbitration Courts, and Boards of 
Trade. ete., as in a word, everything which 
savours of compulsion in any shape or 
form. Any man or body of men should be 
free to carry out any work which they are 
willing to do at a price to be agreed upon 
between the parties. The value of the 
work should be the deciding factor. Aus: 
Eralia’s rural industries were developed 
under these conditions, and we 
did not hear of anyone being uns 
able to live. In the matter of secondary 
industries, unions could functicn quite use- 
fully intra-state or inter-state in the 
carrying out of agreements governing ems 
ployment. An agreement arrived at by 
mutual consent when the spectre of a cold 
and merciless court has been finally laid 
would be more encouraging and more 
faithfully carried out than any of the 
present law-compelling awards, which 
gerve only to create antazonism. distrust 
and hopelessness 
Payment by Results 
must be a ‘condition of all employment 
where it is at all possible. The day-wage 
system permits of too much exploitation 
of trust, and breeds discontent, suspicion 
and hatred of the man who is willing and 
competent to work to his honest and 
reasonable eapacity. Should industry ex 
pect more from one person than another 
receiving similar remuneration? No. 
Therefore, the minimum amount of out- 
put becomes the maximum, levelling down 
the best man to the poorest, and where 
is the man to-day who will admit all men 
are equal, that he is honestly incapable 
of increasing his output beyond the slows 
ast worker. . Nature is against the argu- 
ont | Tepry man hae to vo mail qepards 
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