Of Trade Unions • •
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THE- GENERAL FEDERATION"_,~ :. _. ., __ .. ..· ... __ .... _ ... '__ H_._' .. _.•. .. _._.,"" •. ,,_ .... OF TRADE UNIONS • • CHIEF OFFICE: 40, BRIDGE HOUSE,· 787, QUEEN VIOTORIA STREET, Telegraphic Addl'eSS: " Wellwlsher," London. BLACKFRIARS BRIDGE, LONDON, E.O. PENRHYN QUARRY DISPUTE. -----!- ---- ~(Jn'tJ(Jlt : CO-OPERATIVE PRINTING SOCLETY LntITED, TUDOR STlIF;ET, NEW BRrDGE STREET, 1'J.O. 1901. Tjle meeting may be summed up by saying it was an inspiration to us; being ~EPO~T OF DEPUTATION TO BETHESDA. sent to encourage we came away with tbe feeling that encoUl'agement hail been given to us. RELIEF ComIITTEE. The Management Committee at its last meeting, decided to issue the following Later we ·had an interview with a prominent member of the Helief Committce, report to all societies affiliated to the Federation :- from whom we gatbered much information, being particularly strnck witb the good feeling and perfect understanding which exists between the Union and thc Committee. Acting upon your instructions we visi~ed B<:thesda on October 11th, and ~et the Executive Committee of the Quarrymen s Umon, we found tbem as sangmne aud In conf;idering the drawiug up of tLi~ IejJod we wil>h to say :- cheerful as they were on tbe occasion of previous visits at the beginning of the year, 1. That our previous convicticn-that the dispute must bc contiuuo(l is aud even more determined to continue the struggle. They displayed a keen anxiety confirmed. to place the exact position before us, submitted their books, etc., for our inspection, aud freely answered our questions. 2. Tbat the action of those who, on June 11th, betrayed tbeir fellows, has prolonged the dispute. We found that so far as the quarry is concerned the position is much as it was four months ago, there being a total of 595 employes at present working; of these 242 3. That severe censure if; merited by tbose, who by their attempts to are quarrymen, the balance being made up of officials, old men, labourers, and boys. unclermine the loyalty of tbe men, ~heir threats to the men's .wives, a:nd theh' 'fhere are 69 employes now working wbo were not previously employed at the quarry. acting generally as agents to Lord Penrhyn, are also prolonglllg the dispute. We ascertained that in spite of the attemptfl (over 2,000), and pressure wbich is 4. We wish to point out· tbat, in spite of thc fact ~hat_ tbe contin~lallce of being contin.uously brought to bear upon the men still out, as well as upon their wives the <lispute is dislocating the trade of the whole district, no actIOn of a and families, to uudermine tbeir determination to refuse employment under present pronounced character, other thau tbat of the Federation, is being taken to conditions, no vestige of weakness bas shown itself. effect a settlement. 5. We believe tbat even were tbe men to go back to work now the conditions DnlTRESS. are such fLS would l'esult in continual discord and fresb <lif;pute. We enquired minutely into tbe condition of those in dispute, and incidently 6. We believe, therefore, that the matters in dispute must be scttled this into tbe condition of the whole of the people in tbc distrIct, and found that although time, once and for all. tbose actually suffering through want of tbe bare necessities of life was small, the amount meted out by the Union and Relief Committee was totally insufficient RECO~IMENDATIONS. to enable the recipients to do more than keep body and floul together. Thus the While recognising that the Federation and the Unions affiliated are me~ting average disbursements of the Relief Committee only amounts to 7s. per fortnight, their liabilities to the full in tbis matter, having: regard to the e~ceptlOnal last fortnight it was 6s. 6d. A cOllsiderable number of skilled quarrymell are circumstances of the mise, and the fact that many Umolls have be~n so Impressed working in the surrounding quarries, but, owing to want of room, have to be content with the necessity for a continuance of the struggl?, as w~lI as wlth_ the l~~lated to make slates out of tbe refuse left by the regular employes, and earn only from position of the men involved, tha~ they are voluntarIly makmg grants III adclItlOll to 10s. to 20s. per week, out of which they keep two homes. We witnessed tbe what i'l being done by tbe FederatIOn, we recommend :- return of a batch of tbese men to Bethesda to spend the week-end with their families, anc1 it was toucbing to see old wearied meD, with their wbite or grey 1. That as tbe dispute will in all probability. last a long time, tinal}cial hairs straggling over their forelleads, toiling up the village street to spend a few hours assistance should be ·continued, and tbat such assIstance sbould be. org~D1Rpil. in the homes which they hac1never had occasion to leave since their birth. To this end we suggest, that this r~port h_c sent to all the UUIOIlH Ill. :be Fe<lemtion, with a request that finanCial as-lf;tauce take tbe form of a fixed It added to our admiration for tbem to find that, ratber than remain on the funds sum to be paid periodically (weekly 01' monthly). they would go away for Buch weekly sums as above mentioned. The disbursement cf tbe moneys sent by the Federation and tbe Unions we satisfied ourselves was in gcod 2. That sums which Unions contribute ShOl~h1 be.sent to this ~ffi.ce, a~d. that hands. the officers of the Federation be responsible for Its delIvery to the UnlOJI offiCIals. 3. That a circular be published, adc1resl:led to the 9narrymen of North. 'Yales, THE GENERAL Co;mIIT'l'EB pointing out the position as it affects tbem, and call1Dg upon th~m to Jom the composed of District Collectors, etc" we met later in tbe afternoon and interchanged Quarrymens' Union, and informing those who have. bet~'ay~c1 tbel!' fellows ~hat views on the position; here again we found the sallle quiet belief that they were as the Trade Unionists and the public have tWl~c .m five years finanCIally fighting a good figbt. assisted them for mallY months, that tbose who remam III or accept employment, prior to a settlement at the PenrhYll Quarries, need expect no furtber assistance THE EVENING MlmTING from organised labour. was helc1 in a long shed-like building, in wbich there were a few seats in the front to (Signed) PETB CURRAN. accommodate the old men, women and children, and behind these we found standing, G. N. BAHNBS. waiting for us, some 1200 to 1500 men. The Chairman of. the Union presided, being ISHC J\lrTCUBLL, Secrciary. supported by the General and Financial Secretaries and the Committee, and never has i~ been tbe privilege of those wbo composed the deputation to witness such a meetlDg; tbere was the old man whom we bad seen toiling up tbe street after his week's work in some outlying district, and in front of him was bis old wife, fai,thful in adversity as in success, and there also was the young wife with her clllld, whose husband was away in distant coal fields, earning there the living denied him in the" home of his fathers." ...The meeting commenced by.the.singing of a hymn, in Welsh, the whole audience JOllln;g. Telegrams from those III dlst~nt parts were then read, following wbiclI the meetmg was addressed by the deputatIOn, a report of which you have no doubt seen. THE_ GEN~RAL JEQERATION OF TRADE UNIONS CHIEF OFFICE: Telegraphic Address 168--170, TEMPLE OHAMBERS, TEMPLE AVENUE, "Wellwisher," London. LONDON, E.O. TO THE NON=UNIONIST QUA~~YMEN OF NORTH WALES . • FELLOW VVOHKlIlEN, It has been customary in the Trade Union movement in this country 101' those who required moral and financial assistance, in the rightful ann .legal endeavour to safeguard and improve their working conditions, to look for and obtain that assistance from their fellow workers and the public generally. The only return expected for this assistance has been that the experience gained should be taken advantage of, and that such assistance should be . reciprocated when occasion required. That custom is very rapidly giving phtCe to better methods of organisation. It is not only becoming necessary for those in conflict with their employers to have a good case, they must also give practical evidence of It desire to protect themselves by joining their Trade Union, which in tum shouhl become affiliated to the General Federation of Trade Unions, if snpport from outside is l'equil'e(l. LESSONS LEARNED FROM: EXPERIENOE. Hltppily, the lessons taught in every industry IH1ve generltlly been well learned by the' WOl'lWl'S. In the 'l'extile, Engineering, Building, and more' 2 3 particularly in the Idndred industry to your own-the Mining, we see the rel:luits YOU R RE.CORD. of previous fierce skuggles for Getter conditions in the excellent organisation of those engaged in these industries. There are now upwards of 10,000 Quarrymen in North Wales. In spite of the experiences you have had there are to-day less than 5,000 members of the No longer do th03e employed as Mechanics, Operatives, or Miner::! wai t for North Wales Ql1al'l'ymen's Union who have recognised that unless tllP.Y the crisis before preraring to defend their standard of living; they recognise in themselves look after their combined interests as workmen those interests the competitive struggle in the commercial world that unless a barrier is placPd must suffer.