Work Stopped

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 48, 12 March 1937, Page 10

Work Stopped

Press Association.I

"DIRECT ACTION" AT MANURE WORKS

Men Demand Immediate Rise in Wages WON'T WAIT FOR COURT

(By Telegraph

AlTOKLAND, Lflflt Night. Over 300 employees at three chemical maaure works at Westfield, Otahuhu and Te Papapa stopped work this morning as a result of a-dispute over wages whioh came to a head at the Cofnciliation Coun- ' cil meeting of represeutatives of the men and employOrs on Wednesday night. A mass meeting of men from the ■ three works who are members of the Otahuhu Chemical Manuxe Workers' Union, held at ' the : Otahuhu : works shortly after 9 o'clock this morning, decided that the employ- • eeSrrefuse to work until .their demands are conceded hy .the emr ployers. * ' The move toward cessation of work was made by the employees at the Westfield works of Rempthorne, Prosser and Company's N.Z. Drug Co., Ltd., who held a meeting prior to the usual hour ■ of commencing • work. After deciding • to abstain from .working the employees 'numbering about 80 proeeeded to the Otahuhu works of the Challenge Phosphate Co., Ltd., and delegates also approached the workers at the Te Papapa works of the N.Z. Farmers, Fertiliser' Co., Ltd. The men eeased working at both places at 9 a.m. The dispute over wages developed from a comparatively small issue which was raised at the Westfield works on Wednesday of last week. At the.Conciliation Council proceedings about a fortnight prior to that day an agreement was reached between the men and employers on several points, but tho ' question of wages was held over for consideration by the Arbitration Court which is expected to open its sittmgs at Auckland in May. The Westfield works management was later requested fo concede an increase in wages of f our men employed on the "bank" alternatxvely to relieve men and rotate this particular work. When the management £ecided to replace only two of the men a stop-work meeting was held. It was decided to insist on the wages question being settled without having to wait until' the Arbitration Court sitting and the men demanded that the employers meet theni in & further Conciliation Council sitting and to continuo work pending the outcome of the conference. The Commissioner, Mr. R. E. Price, arranged a meeting between the representatives whic'h was held on Wednesday night. The claim filed by the union asked for 2s 6d an hour for "day men" and 3s an hour for "bank" men and those employed on blu8stone and lime sulphur. The schedule presented by tho employers for consideration by the Arbitration Court offered tho "day men" a uniform rate of 2s 0j£d an hour without any differentiation. At the Conciliation meeting the employers, it was stated, made an offer containing an all-round increase of wages', but this was refused by the men Who demanded that their claim be admitted and agreed to. The proceedings extended until nearly midnight when thcy were abandoned as - no agreemont could be reached. It is understood the men's representatives informed the employers that unless their claims were granted they would resort to "direet action." The decision of the meeting to Btop work was' observed by all the men at the threo works, but at the repreaentations of the respective managements a few of the shift men who are engaged in attending. to the acid-making plants were allowed to remain on duty for a period not exceeding 24 hours. This concession was made out of the men's knowledge that the process of manufacture cannot be abaiidoned at a moment's notice as considerable loss and damage are involved to the expensiv.e plant. Ofiicials of the union declined to make any statcnient as to whether ihe posi tion had been reached of a definite strike or whether the cessation was merely a demonstration of protest foi oue day. "It is no use making a statement at this juncture of the proceedings," was the only comment made by the union secretary. Unofiicial statements by employees which were not confirmed or denied by the ofiicials were to the effeet that the men would report at the various works to-morrow in tho morning and that developments would cTepend on the attitude of tho employers toward the men's claims. Staff men and technical employees are not affected. Numerous lorries which called at the works during the day ftr loads of manure for delivery to farmo/s had to return e'inpty on aceount of the inability of the few lemaiaing sta.fi hands to fill all the ,rde.T.