ENG-1952 — Page 60

HONG KONG ANNUAL REPORT, 1952

Labour Disputes and Stoppages

As indicated in the preceding section the influence of Chinese politics was strongly felt in the Colony, particularly during the first half of the year. This influence was exerted in labour matters through the left-wing Federation of Trade Unions and their affiliated unions. Its effect was clearly marked on the labour disputes in which these unions were concerned and in every case proved disastrous to the interests of the workers involved in these disputes. This was particu- larly unfortunate because in certain cases there was some substance in the initial complaints which led to the dispute, and had these been made the subject of a proper trade union approach the result could well have been not only a removal of these grievances and a general improvement in terms and conditions of service, but also the establishment of a sound employer/worker relationship based on mutual respect which would have been of the greatest value to the future of the industries concerned. As it was, the

As it was, the technique adopted, which was on the lines set out in the 1951 report, succeeded not only in completely obscuring the original points of difference and preventing any settlement on those points but also, in at least two cases (the Wah Keong Rubber Factory and the I-Feng Enamel Factory), so disrupted the functioning of the factories that the managements were led to suspend operations and institute what amounted to a lockout of the workers. Retaliatory action was instituted by the unions who picketed the factories, but after a lapse of time, amount- ing to three months in one case and about a fortnight in the other, a substantial proportion of the workers formed new unions and negotiated a return to work. In the case of the enamel workers the new union has

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