TNAG-0383-FCO40-429-Trade-unions-and-industrial-relations-in-Hong-Kong-1973 — Page 5

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App. I

App. II

cases it might be said plain mismanagement. Left Wing unions have certainly been involved in some of these disputes but there is no evidence that left wing agitation has been either a prime cause of any dispute or reason for its continuance. The evidence rather is that the left wing unions, under firm central guidance from the F.T.U., have exerted a restraining influence on workers and that the communist unions have followed the party line to avoid confrontation with the authorities. There have been, as one might expect, some problems from disciplining would- be militants and some dissatisfaction within union member- ship at this tight moderate central control, but control so far has been pretty effective.

It is however true that these unions continue to do better than the others in attracting members. Thus the F.T.U. unions continue to grow and the size of the T.U.C. and neutral unions remains pretty constant. The attached chart is a graphic presentation of the progress of this development in the period 1966-1972. (The break- down of the 1966 figures that you lacked when you wrote is also enclosed.) The figures for this year show that the pattern is continuing. The Registrar of Trade Unions has prepared this table from an analysis of the accounts sub- mitted by 104 registered unions during the first six months of 1973: -

No. of unions

Comparison between

Total No. of unions

with a/cs

paid-up membership

examined

figures

Increase or decrease

Percen-

tage

1972

1973

Affiliated

60

40

75,632

89,489

13,857

+18%

to F.T.U.

Friendly

towards

23

14

10,880

13,897

3,017

+28%

F.T.U.

Affiliated

80

to T.U.C.

45

11,881

11,691

-190

1%

Friendly

towards

10

5

4,247

4,194

-53

1%

T.U.C.

We should expect to see this trend continue; it has been suggested its momentum may slacken off but we shall have to see how that goes.

The reasons for the trend seem to us to be a combination of factors.

The T.U.C. unions are administratively and fin- ancially weaker. We do not expect them to gain strength during the year; they are clearly struggling to retain members in the face of constant F.T.U. competition.

This

/is