ANNIVERSARY DAY

Wairarapa Times-Age, 17 January 1942, Page 4

ANNIVERSARY DAY

HOLIDAY TO BE OBSERVED WELLINGTON DECISION. EXPLANATION BY SECRETARY. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) WELLINGTON, This Day. The retail, wholesale, commercial and mercantile community will observe January 22, 1942, as a holiday, but many manufacturers will work as usual. This is the outcome of a decision made at a special meeting held in Wellington yesterday to consider whether Thursday next should be observed as a holiday. It was reported by the secretary of the Wellington Employers’ Association, Mr W. J. Mountjoy, that the question was discussed at a large and representative meeting of retail traders, including drapers, bakers, butchers, grocers, hardware merchants, bargain stores, boot resellers, commercial and wholesale merchants, insurance companies, and transporters. The following resolution was adopted unanimously:— “That this representative meeting of retail traders, commercial and wholesale merchants, insurance companies and transporters, after consideration of the effects of the Anniversary Day Observance Emergency Regulations, 1942, considers that in their present form the regulations fail to provide any means in our industries to assist the Dominion’s war effort, but on the contrary the regulations impose greater obligations on us as employers than do the provisions of Acts and awards requiring the observance of Anniversary Day as a holiday, and therefore this meeting decides that employers not engaged on essential war production and services follow the usual practice and observe January 22, 1942, as a holiday by closing their premises and granting a holiday to their employees.” In explanation of the decision, Mr Mountjoy stated that the regulations cancelling Anniversary Day afforded no real benefit to these sections of industry, but in some cases imposed greater obligations than hitherto. “The decision reached,” he said, “does not affect awards covering the building industry, which has always had the right to work on Anniversary Day as an ordinary day; neither will it affect the clothing manufacturing trade, the shirt, silk and white working trade, the costume and dressmaking trade, the coach and motorbody building trade, engine drivers, furfniture manufacturing and many other manufacturing trades covered by awards, which do not include Anniversary Day as a holiday. All these, industries can treat Anniversary Day as an ordinary working day. PALMERSTON NORTH RETAILERS. DECIDE TO CLOSE SHOPS. (By Telegraph—Press Association.) PALMERSTON N„ January 16. Contending that they were not engaged in essential war industries, a meeting of retailers here decided today to close all shops next Thursday, Anniversary Day.