'A Case of Mild Anarchy?': Job Committees in the Broken Hill Mines, c 1930 to c 1954

Labour History

Volumn , Issue 80, 2001, Pages 41-64

  Kimber, Julie ^a  

^a NONE

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EID: 48249110532     PISSN: 00236942     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.3828/27516769     Document Type: Article

References (205)

1. M. Rimmer and P. Sutcliffe, Slaves to Our Own Apathy: The Growth and Decline of the Shop Committee Movement in Australia, Business Research Centre, North Brisbane College of Advanced Education, Research Report no. 4, July, 1979, p. 4;
2. see also K.F. Walker, Industrial Relations in Australia, Harvard University Press, Cambridge, 1st ed. 1956, p. 107.
3. WIUA Minutes, 22 September, 1934;
4. M. Rimmer and P. Sutcliffe, The Origins of Australian Workshop Organisation, 1918 to 1950', Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 23, no. 2, June 1981, p. 217.
5. See for example, W.A. Howard, The Rise and Decline of the Broken Hill Industrial Relations System', in K. Tenfelde (ed.), Towards a Social History of Mining in the 19th and 20th Centuries, Verlag CH. Beck, M?nchen, 1990, pp. 715-6;
6. G. Blainey, The Rise of Broken Hill, Macmillan, Melbourne, 1968;
7. W.A. Howard, 'Australian Trade Unions in the Context of Union Theory, Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 19, no. 3, September 1977, pp. 255-73.
8. M. Rimmer, 'Union Shop Floor Organisation', in B. Ford and D. Plowman (eds), Australian Unions: an Industrial Relations Perspective, Macmillan, South Melbourne, 1983.
9. Erik Eklund, 'Class and Localist Politics at Port Kembla, 1900-30', Labour History, no. 78, May 2000, p. 95;
10. J. Urry, 'Localities, regions and social class', International Journal of Urban and Regional Research, vol. 5, 1981, p. 464.
11. J. Zeitlin, 'Rank and Filism' in British Labour History: A Critique', International Review of Social History, xxxiv 1989, p. 45.
12. J.E. Cronin, The "Rank and File" and the Social History of the Working Class', International Review of Social History, xxxiv 1989, p. 81.
13. R. Michels, Political Parties: A Sociological Study of the Oligarchical Tendencies of Modern Democracy, The Free Press, New York, 1966, p. 365.
14. R. Hyman, The Sound of One Hand Clapping: A Comment on the "Rank and Filism" Debate', International Review of Social History, xxxiv 1989, p. 321.
15. J. Child, R. Loveridge and M. Warner, Towards an Organizational Study of Trade Unions', Sociology, vol. 7, no. 1, 1973, p. 77.
16. R. Hyman, The Political Economy of Industrial Relations: Theory and Practice in a Cold Climate, Macmillan Press, London, 1989. p. 157.
17. T. Bramble, Trade Union Organization and Workplace Industrial Relations in the Vehicle Industry 1963 to 1991', Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 35, no. 1, March 1993;
18. N.F. Dufty, and R.E. Fells, Dynamics of Industrial Relations in Australia, Prentice Hall, Sydney, 1989, p. 181;
19. Zeitlin, 'Rank and Filism', pp. 49-50;
20. Bramble, Trade Union Organization', p. 42.
21. R. Gollan, The Coalminers of New South Wales: A History of the Union, 1860-1960, Melbourne University Press, in association with the Australian National University, Parkville, 1963, p. 221;
22. I. Turner, Industrial Labour and Politics: The Dynamics of the Labour Movement in Eastern Australia, 1900 1921, The Australian National University, Canberra, 1965, p.xvii.
23. Rimmer and Sutcliffe, The Origins of Australian Workshop Organisation', pp. 218-221.
24. While divisions existed within the Collins House Group (CHG), they were nonetheless t>ound together in a web of mutual trust'. Peter Burn has also argued that the CHG 'had some of the characteristics of a single multidivisional organisation', see P. Burn, 'Opportunism and Long-Term Contracting: Transactions in Broken Hill Zinc Concentrates in the 1930s', Business History, vol. 42, no. 3, p.
25. Walker, Industrial Relations in Australia, p. 87 & p. 226;
26. B. Maughan, Review of Industrial Negotiations, 1920 1946, Typescript, Charles Rasp Memorial Library (CRML), Broken Hill, 1947, pp. 2-4.
27. The CHG included the Zinc Corporation, North Broken Hill Proprietary Co. and South Broken Hill. Other mining companies operating in Broken Hill which were either bought out by the CHG or closed during the period, included, BHP, Junction North, Sulphide Corporation and British Broken Hill;
28. B. Ellem and J. Shields, 'Why do Unions form Peak Bodies? The Case of the Barrier Industrial Council', Journal of Industrial Relations, vol. 38, no. 3, September 1996, pp. 390-393, 395-7, 399, 401;
29. K.F. Walker, Industrial Relations in Australia, p. 96, 99, 120;
30. B. Ellem and J. Shields, The Remaking of the Broken Hill Working Class', North American Labour History Conference, 1995, pp. 2-5, 21-22.
31. E. Ross, A History of the Miners Federation of Australia, Australasian Coal and Shale Employees Federation, Sydney, 1970, pp. 305-7.
32. Formed originally as the Barrier Industrial and Political Council, after November 1924, the 'political' reference was dropped. Ellem and Shields, The Remaking of the Broken Hill', p. 14;
33. WA. Howard, The Rise and Decline' p. 720.
34. Ellem and Shields, 'Why do Unions form Peak Bodies', pp. 390-3, 403-8.
35. Ellem and Shields, 'Why do Unions form Peak Bodies', pp. 407-8;
36. WA. Howard, The Rise and Decline', p. 720.
37. J. Shields, '"Lead Bonus Happy": Profit-sharing, Productivity and Industrial Relations in the Broken Hill Mining Industry, 1925-1983', Australian Economic Review, vol. 37, no. 3, 1997.
38. B. Ellem and J. Shields, Turner Revisited: Race, Locality and the Rise of Closed Unionism in Broken Hill', unpublished manuscript, CIAP, 1998, pp. 26-7;
39. F. Farrell, 'Explaining Communist History', Labour History, no. 32, May 1977.
40. H.A. Cubbon, G.J. Gardner, O.A. Oeser and R.C.S. Trahair, Work and Negotiation in the Broken Hill Mining Industry, Department of Psychology, University of Melbourne, Melbourne, August 1966, pp. 34-5.
41. B. Ellem and J. Shields, 'H.A. Turner and "Australian Labor's Closed Preserve": Explaining the Rise of "Closed Unionism" in the Broken Hill Mining Industry', Labour & Industry, vol. 11, no. 1, August 2000.
42. J. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy', pp. 228;
43. K.F. Walker, Industrial Relations in Australia, pp. 88-89.
44. BIC Minutes, 12 May, 1932;
45. WIUA Minutes, 26 May, 1932.
46. BIC Minutes, 9 June, 1932. Attempts to rescind the motion failed on month later, with 11 voting for CPA members to be allowed to hold office, 16 voting against, BIC Minutes, 7 July, 1932;
47. WIUA Minutes, 12 July, 1932.
48. BIC Minutes, 25 May, 1933.
49. J. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy7, p. 236;
50. B. Maughan, Review of Industrial Negotiations, p. 11.
51. The Plod, 3 April, 1931, Mitchell Library.
52. Rimmer, 'Union Shopfloor Organisation', p. 125;
53. T. O'Lincoln, The Militant Minority, Organising Rank-and-File Workers in the Thirties, Socialist Action, September 1986, pp. 3-4, 25.
54. Workers Weekly, 9 January 1931;
55. T. O'Lincoln, The Militant Minority, pp. 2-3, 25.
56. WIUA Minutes, 20 November, 1932;
57. BDT, 20 November, 1932.
58. The Checkweighers Society role was to ensure that ore extracted was correctly weighed. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy', p. 237;
59. K.F. Walker, Industrial Relations in Australia, p. 89.
60. WIUA Minutes, 5 November, 1933.
61. H. Ayers, J. Darcy, P. W. McLaughlan. Other members of the committee included I. Lawson, D. Simmons, T.J. McLaughlan, W. Clarke, J. Jenkins and W. Ford. See WIUA Elections, Broken Hill Miners Group, North Broken Hill, Secretary's file, no. 67, University of Melbourne Archives (UMA);
62. WIUA Minutes, 8 October, 1933;
63. Red Leader, 25 April, 1934, Mitchell Library.
64. Red Leader, 7 February, 1934; also 7 March, 1934;
65. March, 1934. The president of the WIUA automatically became one of two delegates sent to the Central Council of the Miners Federation. See Red Leader, 26 Aril, 1934: 'Dictator Riddiford Again Spits on Union Principles'.
66. WIUA Minutes, 22 & 23 September, 1934: Moved by W Ford and W.J. Palmer.
67. BIC Minutes, 18 November, 1934.16 out of a possible 70 voted for the resolution.
68. Ibid. The members appointed to the committees included: J. Darcy, J.E. Smith, Roberts, J. Virgo, J. White, J. Harris, A.R. Campbell, CD. O'Conner, W.J. Palmer, J. Rose, J.A. White, F. Kelly, H. Ayers and F.E. Smith. Eight of these workers had previously stood on the MM ticket.
69. WIUA Minutes (Management Committee Meeting), 4 December, 1934.
70. BIC Minutes, 5 & 20 December, 1934.
71. WIUA Minutes, 3 January, 1935;
72. BDT, 18 January, 1935.
73. BDT, 11 February, 1935.
74. BDT, 1 November, 1934;
75. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no. 67, 1 November, 1935. UMA.
76. MMA Minutes, 29 March, 1935.
77. BDT, 15 March, 1935.
78. MMA Minutes, 12 April, 1934.
79. MMA Minutes, 10 May, 1934.
80. MMA Minutes, 19 July, 1934;
81. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no. 67, UMA.
82. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no.
83. Letter BH218/34, 29 October, 1934, UMA.
84. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no.
85. Letters BH199/34 and 208/34, 22 October, 1934.
86. B. Maughan, Review of Industrial Negotiations, p. 5.
87. MMA Minutes, 24 October, 1934;
88. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no. 67, BH223/34, 31 October, 1934.
89. North Broken Hill Secretary's file, no. 67, Letter BH422/34, 21 November, 1934.
90. Broken Hill South, MMA Conference Reports 28/01/1924-9/12/1936, 9 April, 1935, UMA.
91. Ellem and Shields, 'Why do Unions form Peak Bodies', p. 407;
92. BDT, 25 April, 1925.
93. Job Committees, As Laid Down By the Mining Companies and The Barrier Industrial Council 13 May 1935. CLAUSE
94. BIC Correspondence Files, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, Broken Hill. (88/28/140/1)
95. R. Markey, In Case of Oppression: The Life and Tunes of the Labor Council of New South Wales, Pluto Press, Leichhardt, 1994, pp. 191-2, 262;
96. G. Freudenberg, Cause for Power: The Official History of the New South Wales Branch of the Australian Labor Party, Pluto Press, Leichhardt, 1991, pp. 183-4, 262;
97. WIUA Minutes, 25 June, 1935, points to a shift away from Lang.
98. BDT, 17 November, 1937.
99. BDT, 26 & 27, September, 1938.
100. BDT, 6 May, 1937.
101. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy7, p. 238;
102. North Broken Hill, Report of Proceedings of the Ordinary General Annual Meeting, Friday 1 November, 1940, Mitchell Library. The net profit for North in 1940 was ?397, 417 and a contract with the British Government to buy lead was renewed for a further 12 months.
103. BDT, 5 September, 1936;
104. MMA Minutes, 14 July, 1938.
105. WIUA Minutes, 30 April, 1935;
106. June, 1935;
107. MMA Minutes, 9 April, 1936;
108. BDT, 2 December, 1935;
109. March, 1936. The South Mine job committee raised ?9 3s lOd and appointed C.Fredrickson as treasurer;
110. MMA Minutes, 11 August, 1938 when the job committee advised mullockers not to work timber men's jobs.
111. BDT, 16 December, 1943.
112. WIUA Minutes, 28 May, 1935. At this meeting the WIUA rules for whom the job committees could report back to changed from the 'men concerned' to 'the men' thereby allowing for larger meetings.
113. BDT, 6 February, 1936;
114. WIUA Minutes, 23 April, 1935;
115. BDT, 27 April, 1936;
116. North Broken Hill, Conference Report, 29 April, 1936, UMA;
117. BDT, 30 April, 1936.
118. MMA Minutes, 20 August, 1936.
119. Zinc Corporation Memorandum, 19 January, 1937, letter from A.J.Keast to E.P. O'Neill;
120. MMA Minutes, 26 January, 1937;
121. BDT, 12 February, 1937, the editorial states that as the men were working to the set to earn rate of 16/5d. per shift, contractors minimum and not the wages miners minimum of 19/lOd.
122. MMA Minutes, 26 January, 1937;
123. February, 1937, letter to Barrier Committee dated 26 January, 1937.
124. BDT, 28 January, 1937.
125. BDT, 8, 15 and 22 February, 1937.
126. MMA Minutes, 8 February, 1937, letter dated 3 February, 1937;
127. North Broken Hill - Industrial - Miscellaneous, January 1935 to June 1937, 24 February, 1937, UMA.
128. North Broken Hill - Industrial - Miscellaneous, January 1935 to June 1937, 4 March, 1937, UMA.
129. BDT, 16 and 19 March, 1937.
130. BDT, 21 June, 1937.
131. BDT, 24 and 25 June, 1937.
132. BDT, 1 October, 1937.
133. MMA Minutes, 10 March, 1938;
134. February, 1938;
135. BDT, 19 March, 1937.
136. MMA Minutes 10 March, 1938.
137. North Broken Hill - Industrial - Miscellaneous Correspondence File, July 1937 to June 1938, letter BH109/38, 5 March, 1938.
138. Conference Report, 6 March, 1938, UMA.
139. Conference Report, 6 March, 1938, UMA.
140. Re: the Underground Foremen and Shift Bosses' Association, MMA Minutes, 11 July, 1935;
141. September, 1935;
142. MMA Minutes, 14 July, 1938;
143. MMA Minutes, 7 April, 1943.
144. MMA Minutes, 12 April, 1938.
145. MMA Minutes, 21 January, 1939;
146. August, 1939;
147. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy, pp. 233-4
148. The price for lead rose from ?stg27 in 1945 to ?stgl62 in 1951. Importantly this increase occurred at a time when there was no limit on the lead bonus which could be paid to workers.
149. The Plod, 15 September, 1938, National Library of Australia.
150. BDT, 14 January, 1942.
151. BDT, 22 July, 1942.
152. BDT, 21 August, 1942;
153. September, 1942.
154. BDT, 31 August, 1942;
155. MMA Minutes, 2 September, 1942;
156. BDT, 14, 16, 17, 18 and 19 September, 1942;
157. Conference Report, Zinc Corporation, 21 September, 1942, Charles Rasp Memorial Library;
158. BDT, 21-22 & 28 September, 1942.
159. BDT, 18 and 22 September, 1942;
160. WIUA Minutes, 7 November, 1942, resolution refusing to work contract, BDT, 30 November, 1942;
161. BDT, 6 November, 1942;
162. WIUA Minutes, 13 October, 1942.
163. BDT, 9 November, 1942.
164. BDT, 15 December, 1942 (less than 800 members voted in this election).
165. WIUA Minutes, 19 January, 1943;
166. BDT, 2 February, 1943.
167. BDT, 3 February, 1943.
168. Maughan, Review of Industrial Negotiations, pp. 16, 225-33;
169. Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy', p. 238.
170. A call by the Zinc job committee for a go-slow to be implemented was ruled out of order by the WIUA vice-president, Stan Wight who stated that it contravened the Agreement. BDT, 2 August, 1943.
171. BIC File, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, 88/28/62/3. Letter 31 July, 1944;
172. BDT, 18 July and 4 August, 1944. See also MMA Minutes, 18 August, 1944.
173. BDT, 8 December, 1943.
174. BDT, 3 August, 27 & 29 September, 1943;
175. see C. Johnston, The Communist Party and Labor Unity, 1939-1945', Labour History, no. 40, May 1981.
176. BDT, 13 October, 1944.
177. BDT, 16 October, 28 November, 1944.
178. BDT, 17 November, 1944;
179. BDT, 7, 24, 28, 30, November, 1944;
180. See for example Zinc Corporation, MMA Minutes, 13 February, 1945 and 17 July, 1945, when the MMA suggested to the Zinc Corporation that it organise 'through the job committee in the first instance', to have the buses (taking the men to work) run earlier.
181. BDT, 7 and 28 March, 1945;
182. North Broken Hill, Miscellaneous Subjects, July 1944 - June 1946, Letter 16 March, 1945, to the general manager at North Broken Hill from Whiteman. Popper Strike in 1936 and the Central Power Station in June/July 1939 were the other occasions when lead bonus was not paid;
183. MMA Minutes, 16 March, 1945;
184. Letter M166/1945, 19 March, 1945, from Melbourne confirming tactic of withholding lead bonus.
185. North Broken Hill - Miscellaneous Subjects, July 1944 - June 1946, 12 March, 1945. (Fischer);
186. North Broken Hill - Miscellaneous Subjects, July 1944 - June 1946, 12 March, 1945. (Whiteman);
187. North Broken Hill - Miscellaneous Subjects, July 1944 - June 1946, 15 March, 1945. (Whiteman).
188. BDT, 16 April, 1945 Attempts were also made to disallow stop works unless ordered by the executive. Other changes which were adopted included;
189. BDT, 5 January, 1946;
190. BDT, 11 June, 9 July, 1945.
191. BDT, 16 November, 1945.
192. BDT, 21 February, 24 May, 1946.
193. North Broken Hill, Industrial, July 1946 to July 1948, 21 May, 1947;
194. BIC File, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, 88/28/62/3.
195. North Broken Hill, Industrial, July 1946 to July 1948, 12 February, 1948, UMA.
196. North Broken Hill, Secretary's file, no. 67, letters BH199/34 and 208/34, October 22, 1934.
197. Ellem and Shields, 'Why do Unions form Peak Bodies?', p.395.
198. For a detailed list of wages and employment levels on the Broken Hill mines throughout this period see Shields, 'Lead Bonus Happy7, pp. 233-4
199. K. Tsokhas, Beyond Dependence: Companies, Labour Processes and Australian Mining, Oxford University Press, Melbourne, 1986, pp. 181-182.
200. BIC File, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, letter from Hec Matson to BIC, 8 August, 1954;
201. BIC File, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, letter from BIC to Hec Matson, 20 August, 1954, 88/28/140/1.
202. BIC File, Charles Rasp Memorial Library, MMA to BIC, 1 September, 1954.
203. BDT, 9 November, 1954.
204. Hyman, The Political Economy of Industrial Relations, pp. 157-8.
205. Hyman, The Sound of One Hand Clapping7, p. 325.