ABSENCE FROM WORK

Wairarapa Times-Age, 13 January 1941, Page 9

ABSENCE FROM WORK

I POSITION IN WELLINGTON j FACTORIES I i STATEMENTS BY MANAGERS, i MINISTER NOT FULLY AWARE OF FACTS. 'By Telegraph—Press Association.! WELLINGTON This Day. I Disappointment and in some cases I dissatisfaction with the statement j concerning absence of employees from work, made by the Minister of Supply Mr Sullivan, was expressed by a number of Wellington factory managers on Saturday The Minister had said that the position was not as bad as had been represented in the Press, but the majority of managers interview held that he could not have boon fully aware of the facts. "Half of our staff are not oven back yet." declared a man whose factory has shown a grave drop in output in the past week through the hands failing to turn up after the Christmas vacation. "If the Minister thinks he can cloud the issue by picking out a few factories which have not been badly hit in this way. he is closing his eyes to a serious problem. I have the figures and the names of the members! of the staff; there is no faking about 1 it.' Another manager remarked that out} of his staff of 150. 40 had failed to return during the week. "On Monday last, when we reopened after Christmas. G 5 turned up" he said. "Out of; those there were about 12 who had a day or so special extension on account of having to come from distant places like North Auckland and Invercargill But up to last night, with a full working week gone in the new year there were still 40 missing. We are hoping that they will came back on Monday, but wo have no guarantee that thov will."

A clothing factory in Wellington suffered a serious slowing down in production through the same cause. The girls who stayed away last week were key units in the concern, and this interfered with and reduced the output of the other girls. T have checked up carefully." the factory manager said, "and I find that we paid out £3OO in wages this week, and we ourselves will get £l5O out of the week's work. How can the Minister say the position is not serious when this is going on all over the citv?"

A factory of a different kind clocked in 48 per cent of its staff on Monday morning, and on the second morning 90 per cent, which is the norma! attendance. On Wednesday, the attendance fell away again to 32 per cent. As this factory employs nearly 300 hands, the defection was serious.

When asked why there was a permanent defection of 10 per cent in his staff, the manager said there was a variety of causes. in which genuine factors no doubt played a part. There was on the other hand the undeniable fact that a great many girls, as soon as they had earned more than £3 in wages flatly declined to work for the remainder of the week

So embarrassing has the absentee problem become that a suggestion was made to the Government some time ago that steps should be taken to make the 40-hour week a practical reality When the 5 per cent cost of living increase was granted by the Arbitration Court factory proprietors suggested that this increase should be allowed only to those employees who were prepared to work the 40-hour week. Nothing came of this suggestion because of a number of difficulties, but it £ now reported that the (piestion is being taken up again in industrial circles.