ABSENT WITHOUT LEAVE

Hawke's Bay Herald-Tribune, Issue 73, 13 April 1937, Page 5

ABSENT WITHOUT LEAVE

— Press Association. >

Action By Employees of Auckland Firm NO REDRESS

(By TeJegraph-

AUCKLAND, Last Night. Without obtaining permission from their employers, 40 employees of an Auckland clothing firm absented themselves from work on Easter Tuesday, and the company found, on application to the Labour Department, that it had no redresp, aceording to a letter of eomplaint which came before a meeting of the general committee of the Auckland Manufacturers' Association. In its letter to the association the company said it wished to point out an anomaly in the awards covering its industry and a number of other industries. This was the question of payment to employees for statutory holidays such as Good Friday and Easter Monday where they a.bsented themselves before or after holidays without permission. As many as 40 of the company 's employees did not return to work on the Tuesday morning after the Easter holidays, and when it took the matter up with the Labour Department the company was told that it had no redress. It would also have to pay these employees for the Easter holidays, although not one of them had permission to stay away from work on the Tuesday. "I think we can all sympathise with theiu in the matter, ' ' said the president of the association, Mr F. N. Ambler, "but it is a matter for the Employers' Association. It shows the wisdom of our having kept out of matters affecting employers and employees. ' ?