HOTELKEEPERS SAID TO BE CAPITULATING

Chronicle (Levin), 10 December 1947, Page 7

HOTELKEEPERS SAID TO BE CAPITULATING

GREYMOUTH, Dee. 9. Beer will cost workers 011 the West Coast no more than- sixpence a glass after this week, as a eomplete capitulation of Coast hotelkeepers to the Trades Council-sponsored boycott oi sevenpenny beers is almost a eertainty, judging by the opinions of Greymouth publicaus this morning. It is expected that the decisions of a meeting of the Greymouth Licensea Victualiers' Association this afternoou and of provuu'ial publieans 011 Thursday will mark the end of the lignt against the workers' efl'orts to bring the price back to sixpence. Even publicaus who were most determined to refuse to accede to what they described as " uureasonable Communist dictatiou" have admitted that the chauces of succeeding in their opposition are uow hopeless. The boycott has beeu m operation for two and a half months, sinee the beer was increased from sixpence to sevenpence in a surprise move by the licensed victualiers 011 October 1. m that time there have been a number of minor incidents, at least three resulting in Court appearances, vvhile recently developments in the district coal mines, where workers refused to work with non-boycotters and took action that eventually led to the loss oi emplovment by live men, brought the campaign to a peak. The presence of oue slxpenny hotel in Greymouth has played a major part in keeping the boycotters solid, and concern at ifs difficultv in obtaining regular supplies of beer from a Dunedin brewery, led to wide repercussions wlien the Federation »f Labottr recommended action against the transportation of this brewery 's supplies to other parts of the Dominion. The Greymoutn sixpenny hotel is now veceiving unlimited suppiies of beer, and this is one of the mai:n reasons for the expected capituiation of the Coast publicaus. Also making the task of the" publieans difficult was the large quantity ot beer transported to the West Coast i»y Christchurch and Westport brewenos, and this counteraeted tho elTorts ot local breweries to prevent boycotters from obtaining supplies other than through the sevenpenny hotels. "We couid not fight tlie boycott under those eonditions, " said a Greymouth publican today, "and there is little hope of resistance after this week 's meetings. ' ' Representatives ot' thc trade yesterday approached the Dobson iuiners, the original instigators of the boycott, 111 a last-minute eft'ort to couvince the workers of the justice of the increase, but the attempt was abortive, the miners reaftirming support for the boycott. This, it is believed, was the linal eflort of tlre pd^Hcans to avoid a withdrawal of the ueftv cliarge. WhetlieFthe rediictiou in price tu sixpence will be sutiicieut to eud the boycott is not eertain, as the Trades Council is now well ahead with plans for a working meu's club, a large buildiug having been bought, and thc | termination of the boycott has prot) ably greatly prejudiced the'chanees oi the success of the establishment. Also, it is unlikelv that the publicaus will de j crease the price without eliminating tut 1 "bar shout" or ^ven reducing the si/.t of gl-ass.e?£ Aefijat oi, , t iy#\s ' : is nikely i>e ! o r hotels '■ i 1) the hands shortly. 'Murty , ptthli/aft\s liave. ; already exTressed- the-..Uile.iit.i6n of sell. •• ing out as 1111 iiulication of their opposition to "dictatiou bv Conimunist-con trolled workers." Otliers, particularly in the countrv dislricts and minmg townships, have been heavy losers as the result of the boycott, trade for tne most paj;t beitig negligiljle.