1 
OUR INDUSTRIAL PROBLEMS. 
‘By “Old Clem.”’) 
To the thoughtful working man, more 
particularly the man who has had practical 
experience of industrial conditions pre- 
vailing in Australia, both in town and 
country, the industrial problems which 
await solution will possibly present them- 
selves in rather a different manner from 
that which they present to the University 
student or the professional mind. 
Let us take a casual glance at a few of 
these possibly more obscure problems. 
The rural industries, hke the sheep and 
:attle stations; the wheat belt worker, 
either farm hand or clearer; the bush tim- 
ber mill employee, ete., whose conditions 
>f employment make married life difficult 
and unsatisfactory either by lack of ae- 
zcmmodation or insufficient pay, or both. 
Ihe svhole system, however, makes 1t 
zasy for these men to “knock up a cheque” 
and then take a holiday to spend it. We 
ire spending money to attract immigrants 
from overseas and are not making pos- 
sible or at least attractive the coming of 
‘Australia’s Best Immigrant.” 
Then there is the problem of the sea 
sonal and casual worker whose wages are 
200 Leavy a burden on the community 
simply because they have to make a 
year’s income in a period of from three 
to six months. The shearer, the meat 
work hand and the lumpers on the wharf 
are outstanding examples of this class. 
Thirdly, and most pressing perhaps of 
all, is the problem of the workers who 
have only seasonal or intermittent employ- 
ment, but who have not by organisation 
and agitation strengthened their position. 
They are perilously near the basic wage 
and yet must expect a considerable pe- 
riod “out of work” each year. 
Overshadowing all these more or less 
minor problems, however, is the industrial 
problem, possibly the only one which will 
present itself to the great majority of 
vorr readasre The arabhlem of the ores 
sontest between organised Labour and or 
zanised Employer, the third man in the 
ring being the Industrial Arbitration and 
Conciliation Court, whose duty it is to 
try and force the combatants to fight in 
1 gentlemanly and sportsmanlike manner, 
This is, of course, all very nice and 
sporty, but the trouble is they are fighting 
instead of working together and getting 
on with the job. There is too much of this 
fighting, not only open hostilities like 
the strike and the lockont, but what I 
Arinly believe to be even a bigger drain 
om the State, a continual skirmish and 
suerilla warfare. Each side is continually 
rying to consol'date its position and if 
possible to take in a httle strip of the 
opponents’ territory. I could mention 
dozens of incidents to illustrate this 
point, which I believe to be the most im- 
portant factor in the problem to be solved. 
Iwo. must suffice. I have seen more than 
twenty men stand idle for nearly an hour 
because no fitter was available to make a 
small adjustment to a pulie- wheel deliver- 
ing power. Any one of these twenty could 
have made the adjustment in two minutes, 
“but you see that it a ftter's work and 
you must think of the principle of the 
thing.” On the other hand, I have been 
stopped by the foreman from doing a job 
which would have enabled the whole shop 
to keep moving, because it was classed as 
1ssembler’s work and “if the manager 
found you doing it there would be a row,” 
so I had to go back to my place and try 
to ‘look busy doing nothing in company 
with at least a dozen other workmen. Now 
any intelligent person will see at once 
that if you take these two incidents and 
multiply them to the n'th degree you 
have one potent reasou why the manufac 
turers are besieging the Tariff Board for 
higher and ever higher protective duties, 
and why Australia is such a consistent 
customer for loans on the money mar- 
ket, 
Let me state as brieflv and baldlv as 
recailvlo 
Every Page a Bright Page : Read “The Western Mail.”