40-HOUR WEEK

Bay of Plenty Beacon, Volume 11, Issue 36, 4 June 1947, Page 7

40-HOUR WEEK

BASING OF COSTS The Cambridge Dairy Company, in a letter to the South Auckland Association meeting last week, stated that it was anxious to know whether any move had been made with a view to having the wage cost allowance increased by such an amount as would reimburse dairy companies for the extra payments under the settlement with the dairy factory employees and through the revocation of the Modification Order.

The chairman, Mr A. G. Alexander, said that at a recent meeting of the Morrinsville Co-operative Dairy Company the question of considering payment on a 40-hour week basis had been discussed, and it had been recommended that a special industrial committee should be formed, the duties of which would be to advise the proposed dairy commission of costs, based on a 40-hour week principle. Early Appointment

Other suggestions which had arisen from the Morrinsville meeting were the desirability of appointing the chairman-elect of the commission as soon as possible and a request to have the price negotiations with the United Kingdom postponed until the settlement of the 40hour week principle. It was acknowledged that the greatest difficulty in forming a committee to make reports in the proposed dairy commission was the fact that it was not known who the personnel of the commission would be.

The procedure of the New Zealand Dairy Board in the past and the manner in which it had taken into consideration costs for submission to the Government when the butterfat prices were under review, was outlined by Mr A. Hayward. He said that the old costs committee of the board had gathered much information with regard to fixing prices, and he said that this information could be made available. Full Support Needed Although the personnel of the committee was not available, he said that the vacancies could be filled in short time and the committee generally re-organised. Originally the committee had been formed to prevent the industry from being divided. Mr Hayward considered that the duty of the association should be to support the New Zealand Dairy Council in preparing evidence for the commission. After much discussion it was resolved, on the motion of Mr A. T. Wright, that the meeting recommend to the New Zealand Dairy Board the urgency of preparing a case for submission to the dairy commission for an increased price for the current season, based on the 40-hour week principle. Most of the discussion regarding the question of an approach to the British Government to increase its payment for New Zealand dairy produce was taken in committee. Opinions on this subject differed, but the following resolution expressed the views of the meeting:—“That this association draws to the attention of the Dairy Board the necessity of presenting the best possible case with regard to total costs of production in New Zealand, when negotiating the price to be paid for next season’s produce.” In support of his suggestion that the chairman-elect of the commission should be appointed as soon as possible, Mr Alexander suggested that the chairman should go to England to take part in the negotiations respecting the price to be paid for future shipments of New Zealand dairy produce.