RESENTMENT.

Auckland Star, Volume LXXI, Issue 14, 17 January 1940, Page 9

RESENTMENT.

ABATTOIR HANDS.

BAN TO SERVICE.

SLAUGHTERMEN PROTEST.

EXEMPTION NOT FAVOURED,

Resentment was expressed at a stopwork meeting of employees at the municipal abattoir at Weetfield this morning concerning a decision, made at a special meeting of the Auckland City Council yesterday, when it was decided, by eight votes to five, to make formal application to the Placement Officer at Auckland, Mr. J. It. Elsbury, that essential workers at the abattoir should W placed on the same footing as freezing workers, and debarred from military service. The meeting started at cignt o'clock and lasted an hoiir.

The following resolutions were unani mously paired: —

(1) That in \ip\v of the appeal by the Mayor of Auckland for volunteers, thw ineoting of employees at the municipal .abattoir protects against the action adopted by tlie City Council in making formal application to the Placement Oflivcr to have slaughtermen and kvymen of the abattoir exompced from military service. ("2) That the employers desire to meet the. City Council, and appoint a deputation to wait upon the council immediately. , Mr. G. Baker, president of the Abattoir Assistants United Freezing Workers' Union, who was chairman, said they wanted to place the position fully and fairly before the public of Auckland. Yesterday they had had «n Interview with the town clerk, and what they had learned Was contrary to what they had understood the position to be. The decision affected 31 slaughtermen, and three others in the abattoir. Personally he coneidere<l that it wae "a wrong business," h* the Mayor of Auckland had made an appeal for volunteers. It had been argued that the men could not be replaced, but killing would fall off a< men went away, as there would be lees to kill for, and in a few months men I would have to go off. Mr. R. S. Whale alleged that the "bosses" had hoodwinked them. He believed that all the name* had been sent in to the Placement Office, and that none of the men would be accepted. Could Not Go. Mr. <;. Brown *uid that the men had been told that the council would no; stolid in their ««y, but now they were told that they could not i;o. The i-liiiiriiiHii said that th«>y were having class distinction of the worst forin. A speaker asked how many competent slaughtermen were out of work at the present time. The chairtian replied that at the present time there were no competent men idle. Another speaker said that at the present time they were only working thirty hours a week. The chairman replied that they were working on a system that had been adopted, and there was proof that they were not too busy to need other slaughtermen. Another speaker said that the "holiday business" had emanated from the inselves. They were in a pool and the public was not paying for it. He added that the position was different at the other works, where the men were killing for export. A Voice: They are trying to make out that this is an export place. The next speaker said that the men were trying to do everything they could to help their country and the Government to win the war, and if men were

taken the others would put "their shoulders to the wheel" and carry on the work, as those who went to the war would make the biggest sacrifice. (Applause.)

A Voice: If a (Jraf Spec came into thc harbour to-morrow we would all be essential soldiers, and uot essential workers. (Laughter.)

The chairman said they had inquired what would be the position if conscription came in. Would they be kept as essential workers, or nut? They had not been able to get an answer to Wiat. A Voice: ill the last war slaughtermen were exempted. The Chairman: They took them right up to the last. A Voice: And a lot of slaughtermen did go. .Now we want to make up our own minds, and we duu"t want I > be exempted. A question was asked if a man was conscripted, would the council make his pay up. The reply from the beck of the room was that if it was claimed ihat a muii waa in a key position he would not gvt away. A Voice: What i≤ the definition uf a. key position. The Chairman: That rc-ti with tinmanager himself. 'I he chairman invited any men who had enlisted to epeuk. A Voice: The acting-l'i hue .Ylinitter said that the liovernni'Cui wauled ih<maximum eulifetinente. The. next speaker «said that he \\a.over military age. llu claimed dial they should not hamper thj young leilows who wanted to go. One young man said that he had tried to get in tne Air Force, but h«d been tolu tJiat there wx-vu no vacancies. The chairman said that if a slaughterman '•chucked it ill," he would etill be classed as a slaughterman. A Voice: Only one man has been etoppod so far. The Uiairnian: But with the councils resolution all slaughtermen will be etopped. He added that the other works were engagwl on exjrort, whereas the abattoir was killing for local consumption. They had carefully gone into the matter. -Many of the export elaughterinen were old men, and it was considered that 70 per cent of the men "on the chain" had 10 be broken in every ecaeon. .Now was tli© peak of the eeason, but at the end erf iUarcli men would drift back to public works jobs, and IK-xt teason another team would have to be broken in. They claimed that slaughtermen who wanted to go overseas bnould have the right to go. A Voice: It is not fair to block u«. It ie rot to talk about a shortage of slaughtermen. The small butchers could go down to VVeeltield for their *Uiff. A Voice: If men don't join before March 31 they will lose their subsidy from tlie council. Another speaker said that it would iio it big lu.iiiluile if young men could ruth to freezing works and «-laiin exemption. It was not a credit to the union lo be exempted. The chairman said that the council'* decision did not give the young men oi Auckland much encouragement to enliet. Several speakers said that the question of subsidised wagee did not enter into the matter, but they would tight for a principle. The chairman eaid that when the resolution in regard to subsidised wages was parsed by tho council it wae thought that it would cover all employees, but they had found out that it only applied to the staff. A Voice: Not a man would join up for the subsidy. It has nothing to do with it. We want to go as a duty. If slaughtermen left the job they would etill be classed as elaug-htermen, as the Placement Officer had been given a list of their names, said the chairman. A Voice: They have made a farce of the whole thing. At thie etage the two resolutione were put to the meeting and carried.