Story: Strikes and labour disputes

The Arbitration Court was intended to set wages and working conditions by a legal process, and to eliminate strikes, but it soon came under attack from the labour movement. This cartoon appeared in the Federation of Labour’s newspaper, the Maoriland Worker. It shows a worker being put through the Court’s wringer by Prime Minister Bill Massey, who says, 'Yes he is a friend of mine, we must keep him thin,' and an employer’s representative who adds, ‘It’s great – he comes out thinner every time.’