FIVE APPEALS HEARD

Southland Times, Issue 24889, 31 October 1942, Page 6

FIVE APPEALS HEARD

: DIRECTIONS OPPOSED BY WORKERS Five appeals were dealt with at a sitting of the Industrial Man-Power . Appeal Committee at Invercargill yesterday. The committee consisted of Messrs M. W. Grantham (chairman), H. H. Gillard and S. D. Macpherson with Mr W. J. Mathers as secretary and Crown representative. TRAMWAY MOTORMAN Charles A. Collett, farmer, of Greenhills, appealed against a direction to return to | employment with the Invercargill City j Council as a tramways motorman. The apI peal was supported by several firms, which stated that the appellant was giving valuable service as a supplier of fowl grit and oyster shell lime for farmers. The appellant said he was 57 years of age. He had been a motorman for 20 years and left the tramways in August 1940 to enter business. He owned the farm and operated with his partner, Shaw, on equal shares. ! The farm would be a good proposition when it was brought into full production. He had dug a mile of ditches since he bought the farm. He received substantial orders for oyster shell grit and lime and had orders for 40 tons on hand at present. He doubted whether his eyesight was sufficiently good to return to the tramways and he produced a medical certificate on the point. The tramways manager (Mr A. C. Carman) said three motormen had been called for military service. One had gone to camp and the other two would probably go shortly. In reply to questions, Mr Carman said appeals had been lodged for the three motormen, but had been withdrawn because it was thought it would be possible to get the present appellant back to the service and the release of another man from camp. The man-power officer (Mr S. C. Bingham) said that as Shaw was accepted as a full partner he must be competent to operate the plant. He submitted that no reasonable attempt had been made to secure other labour. It was essential that the tramways ( be kept fully staffed because the demand for the public transport service was increasing. Decision was reserved.

HOTEL EMPLOYEE Muriel Fowler, spinster, of Bluff, aged 22 (Mr G. J. Reed) appealed against a direction to accept employment with S. Ward (N.Z.)-Ltd. She is at present employed as a housemaid at the Golden Age Hotel. The appellant said she had been employed in the oyster factory canning oysters and j labelling the tins. It was a clean job. Four girls were employed. After the season closed she took work at the hotel as a housemaid, j Mrs Ford, wife of the licensee of the hotel, I was ill and so was her husband. The man--1 agement of the hotel was left to the staff of six. There were five permanent boarders and a number of casual boarders. She was sure she would not like working in the rabbit canning factory. It was very different work from that in the dyster factory. Her wages were £l/12/9 a week. Mr Bingham said the appellant’s wages in the rabbit canning factory would be £4 a week.

The chairman: You are quite prepared to sacrifice that £4 a week to stay in the hotel? —Yes, I am. Mr Bingham said it could hardly be concluded that the appellant was an important member of the hotel staff. She was qualified to work in the canning factory by virtue of her experience in the oyster factory. Tlie canning factory was doing essential work in canning mutton, handling 1300 ewes a day. Female labour was difficult to obtain at Bluff. The appeal was allowed. SAWMILL WORKER

William A. Small (Mr T. V. Mahoney) appealed against a direction to accept employment with H. Bates and Co., sawmillers, Pukerau, as a tailer-out on the grounds that lie was already engaged in an essential industry, the meat canning factory of S. Ward (N.Z.) Ltd,” and that he fiad been medically advised not to return to sawmilling. The appellant said he had enlisted for military service two years ago, but had not been graded and was told he was not required. He had had IS months’ experience in tailing-out at a small sawmill cutting out a pinus insignus plantation at Lumsden. At the canning factory he operated a crimping machine which clamped the lids on filled tins, and the wiring and nailing machines for the cases. He had been accepted for service in the Air Force and wished to be released for that. In reply to Mr Bingham, Mi- S. Ward said his firm had requested the Air Force not to call up Small. The case was adjourned until the decision of the Air Force was known. Frederick William Westbury (Mr R. T. Meredith) appealed against the withholding of permission to terminate his employment at the Waiau sawmill. He submitted that his net earnings were insufficient to maintain properly his wife and five children who lived in Invercargill. He wished to obtain employment near his family for domestic reasons. Decision was reserved. RAILWAY EMPLOYEE

Sydney James Collie, jun., surfaceman, of Wairio, appealed against the refusal of the man-power officer to grant permission for him to terminate his employment with the New Zealand Railways so that he might assist his father on his farm. He had been drawn in the sixteenth ballot and an appeal by the Director of National Service had been adjourned sine die. The Railways Department contended that Collie was essential to the department. If he was withdrawn from the gang the maintenance of the track would suffer and it would be necessary to reduce speed on the line. Decision was reserved.