Papurau Newydd Cymru
Chwiliwch 15 miliwn o erthyglau papurau newydd Cymru
8 erthygl ar y dudalen hon
I Merthyr Hospital Deadlock.…
I Merthyr Hospital Deadlock. I 't r Prompt Rejection of Workmen's Proposals. 44 Build Your Own Institution." I Organised Labour's Alternative. 1 That the terms upon which the workmen of he Borough were prepared to pay zL2,800 fear or thereabouts towards the Merthyr General Hospital should be turned down occa- ionsno surprise. Their rejection by the special Meeting of the court of Govei-liors of the insti- tution held on Thursday evening was quite an rfiticipated event. A virile hostility to the porkers' proposals was apparent from the com fen cement of the proceedings which eulminated 11 an unqualified challenge to the workmen to Pound, if they would not accept the Executive board's terms, an institution of their own. Taking the, numbeTs revealed by the ballots the various proposals there were 151 governors present, an almost unprecedented at- tendance, whipped, no doubt, by the attention 4tawn in the convening notice by the autocratic to the" vital importance of opposing the Workmen's proposals." If these are carried, continued this interesting circular letter, the r%ult will be that the entire management and ?ntrol of the hospital will be taken over by the Workmen, as their representatives on the board kill be increased from six to eighteen, and the j^ce-presidents (with one exception) and the honorary medical staff (with three exceptions) •ill be excluded from the Executive Board. In- asmuch as the workmen have contributed ^tiling to the building and endowment fund of ;he hospital, which amount to a sum of £ 50,000 I,their sole contribution being about £ 2,500 to- wards equipment) we ask the governors to reject \:ho proposal as being unjust and unnecessary and |pt made in the real interests of the hospital. ?o allegation has been made against the Execu-' te Board of mismanagement, and they have ?th the funds available carried on the hospital tID the satisfaction of subscribers and patients have been located there. From the sub- 'oijxmittee'g report it wiU he seen that a pro- sal was made by the Executive Board to "Ouble the representation of the workmen in con- deration of the increased contributions, but hat was rejected by them, and representation ? 18 insisted upon, together with the elimina- :?< of all the vice-presidents except one. These f?-presidents have generally contributed to e funds of the hospital a.nd have been life Governors since the hospital was founded." Ool. J. J. Jones, J.P., the president, was Airman of the meeting, and expressed a hope ?t though, no doubt, there would be sharp ^isions of opinion between factions, nothing ^p*uld be "said or done that might ^reate ill- jehng or bitterness. ORKERS OUT FOR CONTROL. l After some quibbling as to how the resolutions Wild be put, Mr. T. J. Evans (Merthyr miners) 08e to the piece de resistance" of the work- ,ell's proposals, its adoption being seconded by Eben Jones (Dowlais miners). The resolution embodied that in return for a bc,cription of 4s. per annum per workman (and for lads under eighteen) the Executive Board 36 should consist of eighteen workmen's re- ^esentatives with the limitation of the re- mainder to three representatives of the medical I,tta.ff one each to Mswsrs. Guest, Keen and Net- ilefolds Crawshay Brothers, Hills-Plymouth Co. t!ld Nixon's Navigation, eight selected by the tyirt of governors and a seat each for the Presi- e1!lt, vice-president and treasurer. This, said Mr. EVans, was the culmination of j ■ series of attempts made by the workers to litlng about the democratisation of the hospital government and the agitation originated with request of the Executive Board for addi- al°ttal monetary aid. But, strange to say, that IDpeal was not accompanied by a promise or Suggestion of increased Labour representation. he workers were agreeable fully realising the r.gent necessity of funds, but their agreement conditional upon adequate representation, Justifying the reasonableness of the pro- Ials, he pointed out that, these conditional de- alids were endorsed by mass meetings of work- i.l1 and not engineered by a few. Their recep- tiOn by the Executive Board, however, was far t,otn enthusiastic. Workmen insisted on half e representation of the Executive Board be- Ilse they it was who needed the hospital—men 'a,ged in life-endangered occupations and na- l'ny they were concerned about the welfare of their class and because, too, under the proposed lCa.le of contributions the workers would be pay- threS-fourths of the maintenance cost of the stitntion. The" four-shilling" basis was not '0:0 high: he ventured to say that even more p^ uld be cheerfully given if necessa,ry-("Hear, ÍI'a;r," from Labour representatives)—but al- 1'Ys provisionally upon adequate representa- ;n. Bluntly he admitted the workmen were Ut for the hospital control, even to this extent: they paid the whole of the cost they should nhtled to the whole of the representation, r the year HH6 the maintenance of the insti- amounted to C31990, £ 1,700 of which only s derived from contributions. When it was ?embered that the quota asked for from the b?kmen was ?,800 it would be readily ad- "?d their • claim for half representation was i4fit extravagant, but rather particularly mode"t. groover, this £ 2,800 a ye?r calculated out upon e-,?tima d number of 11,000 men  in the krious industries concerned, in hj, opanion, was ??kil UndeT-estimate; there were more like 18,000 ?*ganised workers and even further unorganised l?ig,e-e,a,rr-ers might be persuaded to contribute I ill proper control w?re acceded them. IORST HOSPITAL IN THE KINGDOM." I t, A medico had described the institution to him j, the worst hospital in the kingdom, and true it ^as in his (the speaker's) opinion that it had I kept pace with the growing needs of the ?ough. The only way out of the dimculty was t)?? the workmen's proposals; without their con- 'ilbli?tions nothing could be done. If the 't O,t,ke?rs were conn dent of being adequately re- ?s?nted in its government the hospital had a 4 ?ht future? otherwise, none. ?assiiag on he vouchsafed nothing but praise 1'" e existing medica,! staS, but denied the v «dity of their claim each to a seat on the ^utive Board, by virtue of their ho»or<ary P-nts? illustrating his remarks by draw- J h ing parallels with the management of the Cardiff IInfirma.ry, where the medicos were represented l?b,-v five, and Aberdare Hospital, where the" re- presentatives allowed numbered three. EXECUTIVE'S PROPOSALS EXPLODED. Next he dealt with the counter-proposals of the Executive Board, in offering terms which on appea,ranee.s allowed the workmen twelve repre- sentatives (instead of the existing six) on a board of twenty-two. But to that number must be added twenty-one vice-presidents, eleven doc- tors and the president and treasurer, making a membership of 56. And as honourable men they could not, with any vestige of dignity, accept such terms—quarter representation for more than half monetary maintenance. Shortly the refusal of the demands of the workers would mean the future of the' hospital would be even more than the past, their accep- tance assured success. Mr. Eben Jones, seconding, appealed for the adoption of the proposals so that sufficient ac- commodation (now restricted by lack of funds) might be accorded the injured in the liosp-ital-- that, a helping hand might be extended the man on the stretcher," all too often of late compelled to enter the workhouse infirmary when cut down in his perilous calling and stig- matised by unsolicited pauperism. (" Shame.") Mr. F. T. James moved as an amendment the total rejection of the resolution, doing so (he said) only with great reluctance. After recapi- tulating the story of the foundation of the hospital lie declared that, although 95 per cent. of its advantages had been enjoyed by the workers during the 30 years of its existence their contributions were infiinitesimal. Defend- ing the Executive Board's counter-proposals as reasonable," he objected to the interpreta,tion put upon them by Mr. Evans, who knew quite well that with the exception of about 5 per cent. all the vice-presidents lived without tke Bor- ough and never attended a board meeting. It was absurd. WORKMEN'S ALTERNATIVE. u It is not reasonable for you to come here to-day and say Hand over this hospital! You have your remedy. Yon are strong enough. You have funds enough for a hospital of your own. That, I say, is a reasonable solution. This is a general hospital forevery class of the commu- nity, and therefore if you workmen have the funds and energy, build your own hospital and maintain and control it," he concluded. The amendment was seconded when Mr. T. J. Evans asked leave to contradiet the statement respecting the "infinitesimal" con- tributions of the workmen, by comparison with the donations of other contributors, but after a few ineffectual attempts to speak sat dpwn, ruled out of order by the chairman. On a card vote, the resolution was loet by 104 to 47. The second of the workmen's resolutions— that the honorary medical staff should be formed of all panel doctors in the area served by the hospital: a principal after two years' residence and an assistant after five years' residence in the district—was moved by Mr. Wm. Jones (Merthyr miners) and seconded by Mr. Tom Powell (Dowlais miners) only to be promptly op- posed by Dr. Cresswell (Dowlais) as (so he main- tained) absolutely unworkable in an institution of the size of the General Hospita. Put to the meeting the resolution was negatived. Mr. Lewis Jones (Dowlais miners) moved, and Mr. B. J. Williams (Merthyr miners) seconded the last of the workers' proposals, viz.: Small bodies of workmen or societies subscribing the sum of £ 5 per annum should be entitled to ap- point a governor. Mr. Jones pointed out that there were a considerable number of such bodies which would contribute liberally on these terms and added that so far as the Dowlais miners were concerned they had not received what they expected from the Executive Board for their L,900 a year subscriptions. CHALLENGE ACCEPTED. Mr. B. J. Williams took up Mr. James' chal- lenge. In future he hoped it would not be neces- sary for them to come begging on bended knee to people better circumstanced than themselves. He anticipated that the workers would quickly organise themselves in the creating of an institu- tion of their own. A tie in voting—53 for and against—'being declared, the chairman gave his casting vote against the resolution. Mr. D. W. Jones moved the resolution of the "other side" that the workmen at the Dowlaie works should, so long as they subscribed an- nually a sufficient sum to cover the cost of the maintenance of one bed, be entitled to nominate five governors; and if sufficient for two beds or more, three additional governors. The workmen of the Cyfarthfa, Plymouth and Merthyr Vale works should receive similar representation the condition being that there must be a subscription amounting to sufficient to cover the cost ( £ 100) of a bed before any nomination from any one of the works could be made. Mr. Jones said that it was obvious that the rule (Law No. 5) must be amended to the above terms to meet the ad- vance in the annual maintenance of a bed from £ 50 to £100. Mr. B. J. Williams pointed out that the.oper- ation of the amended rule suggested upon the workers' representation would be that if R400 were contributed instead of having 15 governors they would only be entitled to eight. Here thev found a type of Prussianism alike to the Ger- man variety. Of course, the workers were per- fectly aware of the opposition's power, but sooner c, later that would have to be met. The turning down of the workmen's proposals would damn the hospital's future. The motion having been seconded, it was car- ried by 57 votes tto 40.
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I Trade Union Notes.
I Trade Union Notes. I By Trade Unionist. ITEXTILE INDUSTRY. I commented last week upon the situation in the textile industry and the imminent danger of an increase in unemployment, owing to decrease in shipping facilities. Now comes the news that the Cotton Control Board has reviewed the posi- tion of the industry, and has issued a new order, to come into force on November 19th, to the effect that only 60 per cent. of the spindles in any milt are to be run. Under the old control scheme, mills could, with a special permit, run 80 per oenrt. of the spindles—60 per cent. on Government work and 20 per cent. on private work. The effect of the new order is to stop the private work. It is further hinted that this curtailment of consumption may not be suffi- cient, and will require further review later on. The outlook is decidedly bad; unemployment will be enormously increased, while the operatives kave given notice of their determination to be relieved from the conditions of the scheme jointly agreed upon, which provided that em- ployers should, on the one hand, pay unem- ployment benefits, while the men, on the other hand, were precluded from applying for an in- crease of wages. What will cme of the Trade Union funds under the circumstances? Š" o..t. LANCASHIRE OPERATIVES' WAGES. Each section of the Lancashire cotton opera- tives is now applying for. an advance in wages to meet the increased cost of living, and the re- duction in earnings caused by short time worked. The Amalgamated Society of Operative Spinners ask for a 30 per cent. advance, which, with the 20 per cent. granted since the beginning of the war, will make a 50 per cent. advance on pre- war rates. The Amalgamated Society of Clti-d and Blowing Room Operatives are making a similar demand. The Federated Unions of the weaving section of the industry are claiming a 40 per cent. advance. We sincerely hope that the workmen will succeed in their efforts they will want the advance badly, what with the high cost of living and the gloomy prospect re un- employment. 5* EIGHT HOUR DAY. Messrs. Rylands and Sons, Ltd., and Messrs. Burgess, Ledivard and Co., Ltd., have adopted as an experiment, a 48 hour working week. The working week at present in the spinning and weaving trade is a 55! hours one, and the main object in these two cases is to ascertain whether a shortening of hours will result in increased efficiency. The experiment will be watched with interest by all sections in the industry. The eight-hour day has been an unqualified success wherever it has been applied, and we may con- fidently anticipate a favourable result in this case also. A 48-hour working week is bound to come, sooner or later, for all industries, and the result will be increased efficiency and higher wages. CANAL MEN AND WAGES. i I The men employed upon the Bridgewater, Rochdale and Leeds and Liverpool canals, who are organised in the Dock, Wharf, Riverside and General Workers' Union, applied last month for the conversion of the 15 J a week war bonus now paid into permanent wages and also asked for a further increase in wages of 5/- a week. The employers passed on the application to the Canal Control Board; which now administers the canals on behalf of the Government. (Carters who work along with them had there 15/- con- verted into wages last August). Nothing had been heard from the Control Committee up to the end of last week. The men considered thai: there had been undue delay in dealing with their request, and they took the extreme step of striking in protest against such dilatorinese. On Saturday morning the men were informed that the bonus would be converted into wages as from the first week in December. The men refused to accept, their contention being that the award should be retrospective as from August, to put them in the same position as the carters, and to give them am advantage in payment of overtime. They also insist upon the 5/- a week additional increase being granted. • I- LANCASHIRE CARPENTERS & JOINERS. I The application of the carpenters and joiners in Lancashire for an increase of 3-,Id. per hour has been refused, and .the matter is referred to the Northern Centre Conciliation Board. COLLIERY EXAMINERS. I The colliery examiners have now settled their di. fferences with the coal owners. A delegate conference on Saturday last decided by a vote of 3,339 against 281 to accept the proposal of the Coal Controller. The following are the tenno agreed upon: The Colalowners Association agree to recognise the Cblliery Examiners' As- sociation, and form a joint board forthwith, and frame rules of procedure and regulations. Any question affecting overmen shall not be dealt with by the joint board, «and both parties agree to do their best to maintain the good relations which have in the past existed between them. It will be seen that the main thing contended for, viz., recognition of their association, has been won, but before their position will be se- cure, they must eome to some arrangement with the S.W.M.F. This is quite essential. They must cease to be so closely associated with the employers as officials, and come into closer touch with the workmen. Affiliation with the men's organisation seems to me the best way to effect this. Affiliation on such terms as will secure the mutual aid of either in the furtherance of their ob jects.
Dowlais Notes.
Dowlais Notes. Miners' Social Science Classes. Despite the curtailed train service and rumours to the contrary, the Dowlais Miners District are continuing their educational acti- vities at Dowlais and Bedlinog. The classes at these two places are held on alternate Tuesdays. The subject is Industrial History," and the teacher Mr. Mark Starr. The next Dowlais class will be on November 27th, 6.45 p.m., at the Carnegie Hall. Bedlinog class will nexti meet on December 4th, at 6. p.m., in the same vestry as before. Will all who can, make a point of showing by their attendance their ap- preciation of these ventures? They will also thus make wider the educational movement which is stirring in all Corners of the kingdom and help to hand on the torch which will finally triumph over the darkness of ignorance.
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The I.L.P. at Kenfig Hill.
The I.L.P. at Kenfig Hill. RECORD RECRUITING. MEEETING FOR THE ELASS-WAR. The 31st of October should long remain a xed- letter day in the annals of history of the Labour Movement in Kenfig Hill. The populace having been notified that on this date the attempt would be made to open a branch of the Inde- pendent Labour Party at the* Workmen's Insti- tute. Those interested and other kindred spirits turned up in force somewhere in the neighbourhood of 300 people. Comrades Harry Davies, Taibach, and Tal. Mainwaring- were the speakers. Comrade John Woclley presided. Harry Davies traced the history of the work- iiig-elass movement from the Industrial Revolu- tion up to the present position, dealing with the divorcing of the workers from the land so that the Capitalist machine should be fed in the in- dustrial areas. He also dealt with the starting of the I.L.P., what were its objects, and how it had progressed since its inception, its efforts in propaganda and education from a class-con- scious point of view. He explained, too, the at- titude of the organisation to the present war, how it was untiring in its efforts for the further- ance of peace by negotiation. The address was much appreciated. Up to now everything had gone on without interruption. During the interval we decided to try the" Red .Flag, then the" patriots" thought it was time to interfere and started God Save the King and Rule Britannia in opposition. Now the "budding I.L.P.ers" had their first baptism of an intelleetual oppo- sition and how it must have come hoxie"- to these young warriors, that an object acquired without opposition does not lend zest to the fight." Singing? We sang the chorus until the patriots got tired, which they did in about t,en minutes. Some of us felt convinced that if they got tired of singing so quickly they would want stronger resolves to fight for a cor- responding space of time. How true is the Latin proverb, of these sycophants, Vox et -praeterea nihil (a voice and nothing more). Tal now addressed the meeting, he said it would be more appropriate if the audience sang God Save the People," and the people should take a hand in trying to save Britannia. He could understand the ruling classes trying to curtail our freedom, but he was at a loss to un- derstand why sections of the working-class should so readily assist the class that were op- posed to our interests. Tal's style wasN just Tal," virile, sarcastic, cutting, but a truth I driven home in every sentence, always master of the situation to such an extent, that when he finished what was, in my opinion, one of the most smashing indictments of the apathy of the workers in realising their true positions in the class-war, not one of the opposition could even frame a question, let alone ask one. We proceeded to now go into the details necessary in forming the Branch and asked all the converts to stay behind. The result was, beyond our wildest dreams, 60 names to start a new branch. I wonder how many districts can boast that for a first meeting? Comrades Thos. Mitchell, president; Edgar Harmon, treasurer, and J.. Woolley, 63, Pisgah Terrace, Kenfig Hill, secretary, were appointed as officers. It would be almost impossible to improve on these, and the branch should look forward to much useful work being done in the near future. The first branch mating was held on Wed- nesday, November 15th, which was largely at- tended, when the preliminaries were gone through, appointment of various committees, collectors, literature secretary, etc. Mr. Meth Jones was present and addressed the ladiee on the part they would take in the Labour Move- ment when the new Franchise Bill became law. Meth is always instructive when expounding political propaganda. Let us hope that with such a good start we shall have a real live branch at Kenfig Hill. Shortly we shall have such stalwarts a,s Rev. G. Neighbour, Coun. J. W. Kneeshaw. and Our Dick Wallhead to put us on the right road. War Almer Accepts Chalienge. A war aims nreeting was held at thêö Work- men's Institute on Tuesday, November 14th. Mr. Hart (Manchester) and the Rev. J. Jack- son (Margate) were the chief speakers. Mr. 6. Lipscomb (Margam) presided. Both these gen- tlemen made long speeches bristling with wea- pons of destruction, the platform a regular shambles, bloody murder rampant, Christ for- 7 "7hen they gotten, Old Testament for the New. When they had finished we were as wise as to the actual .war aims as-if they had not spoken. They in- vited questions, then the trouble began, some t' were answered in a truculent spirit, but the questions got harder and Hart began to cast slurs at the" paeifist.s and Peace by negotia- tion" with puerile contempt. He was promptly challenged to a public debate, and accepted. We are trying to get Dick Wallhead to lead the debate for." May power be given to his elbow, but we trust him implicitly.
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Pontycymmer Notes.
Pontycymmer Notes. i I.L.P. The fortnightly meeting of the Garw Valley Branch of the I.L.P. was held at the Ffaldau Institute, Pontycymmer, on Monday, when Com- rade Lewis read a paper on. "Democratic Con- trol. Lively discussion followed. Over 100 memberg have been enrolled. More are wanted,. Kneeshaw is coming soon. 1 — m —rnrmm* V'8 ±