Aug. 29.
'URNING the pages of Shanghai i's history a few years, one notices, with envy, that: the number of strikers in the city in those days was sometimes as low as 75 in a day—in comparison to the 7,500 &ind some ti more recorded daily now.
True, the high cost of living has quite a lot to do with the current labour situation in Shanghai, but the real reason for these troubles lie deeper than it is noticeable to the eye of the majority of Shanghailanders.
Behind these strikes Is a strauss or. ganization—the. Nanking. sponsor Special Movement. Direction Com~ mitles—an. organization. aiming 10 monopolize the enure. labour move ment in the city, and judging by. the number. of disputes. this. committee Has more than fulfilled its aims, It is Known that even employees "of est. ablishment sympathizing with the Chungking' Government' have on more than, one occasion appealed to. the Nanking-sponsored.. unions Mediate in their disputes, thus Ynowleaxing their power.
Lawyers Sometimes Engaged the, Sepa Movement, Direction committee has labour unions in every forge establishment of the elly. as the one of Cathay Hotels Lid. the mem. Bers of which ineidenially. were arrested by the French Police the day they met for the first time. Many these Unfons have engaged lawyers to their work for them; walla. at feast rene Is known to be' employing ell epolwn forcian advocate, t would be weonk 19 say. of the "hundreds "of thousands. Workers, employed in various trades. sympathize with these Nanking-sponsored unions, Par from it. There were guses—in the Compagnie Francaise de Gramways et deslairaxe Electriques Gen Shanghai, © for" instance—where Workers otused to join' the unions and this resulted in many a pitched battle between the union supporters and the. rest. The former won out eventually arid. all the: members the French Tramways Company now wear the union badge, Quite Prevails on Labour Front Aug. 21, Reports to the effect thats satisfactory. agreement in the Shanghai and Hongkew Wharf dispute had been reached between the representatives of the coolies and the man~ Dgement were denied by an official yesterday. it, wes revealed that negotiations were ing, that the Parties od' failed to reach an understanding.
Meanwhile. the strike at the China generat Grits Ca, continua with: Out change yesterday and no buses Were. operated, although it was. exfected "that several vehicles. would.
Tun on Toute 10 in she morning.
Chinese prowNanking papers yes terday claimed that the strike had een declared chiefly because the management dia not carry out all the fongitlons or: the agreement reached the "Central China Daily News"
ried that the workers made the "An increase in the high cost of 2. "Equal treatment of foreign and Chinese employees.
No dismissal without cause.
was also reported thay the Shanghai Brunch ofthe 'Special /Moverrent Direction' Committee had
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.