An historical survey of the actions and policy of the New Zealand waterside workers' union from 1937 to 1951, being a critical account of their domestic and foreign policy

Abstract

The primary purpose of this thesis is to give an account of the actions and policy of the New Zealand Waterside Workers' Union during its years of active existence, viz., 1936-1951. For this purpose the principal sources have been the records of the Union, principally the Union paper, "The New Zealand Transport Worker", and the reports of the biennial conference. From these two main sources - and a complete file is in existence - can be drawn the speeches and articles of the Unions' leaders and the most important documents concerning the Union and the Government. The latter were normally published in full and, when an important dispute was reported on, e.g. the Tetra Lead Ethyl dispute (Auckland 1949) the employers submissions were often published alongside the Unions' case. Naturally enough the paper devoted itself principally to reporting the Unions' own affairs but, when a knowledge of the employers case seemed necessary for the information of the membership the employers' submissions were published.