Mexborough & Swinton Times, February 14, 1936

Miners Meeting at Denaby
“In Union or Out of Pit”

At a joint meeting of the Denaby and Cadeby Main branches of the Y.M.A. at the Welfare Institute, Denaby, on Sunday, called for the purpose of thoroughly discussing the “non-union” question, protests were made against the non-union miners, without having to pay anything in the way of subscriptions as Y.M.A. men had to pay, yet getting advantage of the 1 shilling per day wage increase obtained through the activities of the Y.M.A.

Mr Ben Roberts, president of the Cadeby Main branch presided.

After a discussion lasting more than an hour the following resolution was passed unanimously on the motion of the Messrs David Sheldon (delegate of the Cadeby Main branch) and George Oldfield (Cadeby branch committee) :

“That this meeting pledges itself to make the Denaby and Cadeby branch 100 percent strong and vows that in the case of any non-union men who desire to stay out of the union the union men will make them stay out of the pit.

“Black lists2

It was unanimously agreed that blacklists of the non-union employees should be posted at each of the union boxes at the two collieries.

Mr Ben Roberts said they had a number of people who were not in the union, and he wanted all the union members behind the officials in saying that if these men would not come into the union they should go out of the pit.

It was a shame when they had men who had worked in those pits for 40 years and then had to give way to young men who had not been there long, and who, in some cases were not members of the union. A lot of men who were supposed to be too old could show them how to get coal out and to keep themselves safe.

Mr Roberts said they were determined that they were going to have everybody in the union and if they were not in the union they were going to get them out of the pit. He was not satisfied with the one shilling a day increase in wages. They wanted the 2 shillings a day. The public had responded. Everyone had increased the price of coal and the miners knew that there was a lot of money going into the collieries. The middlemen were keeping the profits.

They all knew that if they had proper agencies and if the workers and management got together to discuss also the methods there would be no need for people to pay 50 shillings per ton for coal. The miners knew that the miners were not getting the money and they knew that someone else was getting it.

At Cadeby in 1912 they had suffered a disaster and other people had suffered recently at South Kirby, North Gawber and at Kilnhurst only last week, and they all knew perfectly well that the question of wages wanted going into fully. Wages were insufficient. There had been complaints said Mr Roberts during the last four or five weeks about the contractors wages at Cadeby colliery and he wanted to say that the Y.M.A. did not intend having their men’s wages interfered with.

A skilled contractor should be equal to a skilled collier and as joint branches of the union it was their duty to look after everybody who went down the pit. They wanted everyone in the union but they would only be able to do that with the help of the union members

“Making Bullets.”

Mr Tom Shepard, president of the Denaby branch of the Y.M.A. described the non-unionists as parasites and said that the non-union men were the men who always caused the trouble. One was always hearing them grumble, and they were always making the bullets for the union officials to fire. If the non-unionists would not join the Y.M.A they ought to be out of the pit. They were hoping that the morning union men would become missionaries and tell the men at Denaby and Cadeby that they had either had to join the union or get out of the pit.

Mr Tom Hill said he thought that they had passed the time when they had to call a mass meeting on the non-union question. They were free of four ways by which they could make the it unprofitable for the non-unionists to be out of the Y.M.A and another society whereby the face workers could belong that of a society. Mr Hill said he also wanted to warn both unionists and non-unionists that they were by no means out of the war on the question of the wage increase. He had been told by a man who helped in the negotiations in London that by July of this year they would have to face difficulties in Yorkshire, probably as great as the miners Federation executives have been facing the last six months because the ascertainment agreement had to be made again. “I want to warn you people,” said Mr Hill, “that you are not yet out of the lane. You have not even begun to dig the trenches for the stand.

“Gift” for Non-Unionists

Mr. J. C. McFarlane delegate of the Denaby branch, said that even at the minimum a non-union man, even on a three-day week, was getting a gift of £7 16s a year as a result of the wage increase. If he paid the £2. 12s a year union subscription he would be left with a balance of £5 4s. A simple gift from the simpletons of trade unionists.

He was hoping that the men would unanimously adopt the slogan, “In the union or out of the pit. The slogan should go from Yorkshire and throughout the country.

Mr J. Madin congratulated Edlington on making a stand on the non-union question. And added that he had hoped that Denaby and Cadeby would have been the first in the field. He mentioned that during the past fortnight 12 men had joined the Cadeby branch.

Mr David Sheldon (delegate of the Cadeby branch) said that there was only room in a colliery for one union, either for pit bottom or pit top men, and he thought that the union which catered for the majority of the men, and catered best for them should be that union. The Association was the Y.M.A

Mr. J. T. E. Collins said that since July, 1934 Denaby had made 540 members and during the past fortnight had enrolled 43 new members. He explained that the branch committees thought it was in their interests to act jointly on the non-union question

Mr Collins said that they were making progress with the union at Denaby. They had 1680 men in the union now, which was a great increase upon the 1934 figures. There were 2100 men employed at Denaby and he would not be satisfied until they had topped the 2000 mark.

Depreciating the working of overtime and weekend work, Mr Collins declared that it was essential that overtime and week end work should be stopped. Surely men did not want to be working all the time. He appealed to the men to aquaint the union of cases over time and week end work.

“We are determined,” said Mr Collins, “at both pits that we shall get 100 percent membership, and then if any trouble does ensue we shall take action as a solid body and see our efforts brought to a satisfactory conclusion.”

During question time Mr E. McFarlane asked if it was not unfair that in Yorkshire they were taking the 1 shilling increase when other districts were not as fortunate and were getting less.

The chairman said he agreed and said he thought there should be an equal increase throughout the country.