Airmen Want Union Hours

Chronicle (Levin), 18 September 1946, Page 6

Airmen Want Union Hours

-Press Ass,ociation

ABOUT 800 REFUSE DUTY

By Telegraph-

AUCKLAND, Sept. 17. Ainuen of the 1LN.Z.A.F. totalling ubout SU0 for the wliole of New Zeahuid, ret'uaed duty this morning to oni pha.sise tlieir detnaiid for a 40-hour liveday week. Tlieir action followed the promulgation of an Air Departmeiil order requiring up to 50 per cent of the men to bo retaiued for Saturday niorning duty and the iinniediate renult was ulmost a eoinplete paralysing of the Aii Force statiou at Whenuapai and with less serious efl'ects at •Hobsonville, Me chanies Bay and a mnnber of otiier f tations in difl'erent [larls of the eountry. rhe isstie was undei'ided lonight. The stoppage at Whenuapai took the t'onn of a "sit-down" strike and at several other stations the airmen .senr sinall delegations to wait on tlieir te speelive commanding oflicers to indicate tlieir views and to aniiounce tlieir decision not to work. Essential service^ were niaintained every where, soine by using oflicers and senior non-coiuniis-sioned oflicers for duties normally per fonned by the airmen, and others by conxincing the nien that tlieir com plaints- were being in vestignted and by persuuding tlieni to resunie duty tem porarily on this basis. Following a conference botween the Miuister oi' Dcfencc. Ilon. F. .Tones, thc Acting Chief of Air Sta fl". Air Commo ilorc Wallingford, and Ihe Assistan' Air Force Meinbcr for Persoiinel, Win Commander 11. Welib, in Wellington Air ( 'omniodore Wallingford flew t« Whenuapai latc this aftcrnoon. He con ferrod imiiiediatclv with the coinniaml ing oflicers of thc thrce Auckland stations, (ironp Captain C. Hunter, (•! Whenuapai. Wiug ( 'onunander A. F Willis, of Hobsonville, and Wiug Com niander A. A. X. Breckon. of M'oehani--s Bay. While no stateineut was made forpublieation it is understood that thc airmen at Whenuapai, the maia centre of trouble. will be addressed tomorniw morning by the Acting Chief of Aii Bluff. It is expected he will explain th reasoii for the order and point out tliai the ainuen are all voluiiteers in the armed scrvice. that tliere never ha-' been a -tfl-hour, live-day week as an in flexible rule ia the R.X.Z.A.F., and Ika" to meet the exigcncies of the serviee the nien niay be required to work be yond normal civiliaa hours. The air nien at ihe two other Aueklaud statiou are to be addressed by tlieir commaml ing oflicers. Whate\er the (iovcrnnieiit "s decisioe may be in this instance, it is thought. likely that the order that has given rise to the present dispute, if not imme diately cnforced. will come into full |lt fect as suon as the ])eacetime pay rates are aiuiounced. .It is eommon kuow ledge that fresh rates of pay for t h« R.X.Z.A.F. and also for the otiier arnio'i foreos, are uiuler eonsideralion and it expected that with their introductiou will rome orders making it plain tha ihe airmen. as members of tui anne. force, are expected to be trained alighting men as well as techuiciaus, tha. tliey are paid to respond to duty a irregular timcs as lecpiired, and thai noue of the servicos operates on a t rndos union basis. Wlieu the statiou warrant-oflicer n Whenuapai called the usual ]»arade t!n morning the men stayed in front of 'he jiirnien ?s mess instead of falling in "We do not intmid to budge until we lia\e a gnarantee that we will be re ipiired to work not more t ha.ii ffl hours a week," said a spokesinau. " W e in tend to stay on strike until we gel a satisfactory answer. We ean liold • i.' as long as tliey can. The men liavt been ordered to return to work, iai*. none has complied." Although the stall's of the airmen V sergeants' and oflicers' mosses ceasc work the nien stated that tliey weri not afraid of starving as tliey intende to cook "tlieir ow n meals in the airmen b mess for the duration of the strike. No maiiiteinince was carried out a Ihe Whenuapai haagars this morniitg Most of the flyiag activities hav> cesised. The Dakota on the rcgular (liglit ti •iapan left after being jirepared by lw. n. c.o. 's of the regnlar Air Force an 1 ai otlicer. Thc internal transport scrvicewere niaintained in ihe same way.