LOW PRODUCTION

Auckland Star, Volume LXXV, Issue 177, 28 July 1944, Page 4

LOW PRODUCTION

N.Z. COAL MINES

LOSS OF TIME CRITICISED

(By Telegraph.— -Parliamentary Hcporteri

WELLINGTON, this day,

Extracts from a circular issued b> the Glen Afton Collieries, in the Waikato, declaring that the coal position would be improved if avoidable idle days in the mines and stopwork meetings among the miners were eliminated, were read by the Leader of the Opposition, Mr. Holland, during the second reading debate of the Finance Bill in the House of Representatives yesterday. He criticised the presence in the Ministry of Mr. McLagan, a no.:elected member of Parliament and secretary of the United Mine Wont--61 Mr. Holland said he did not wish to criticise the miners. He believed they should receive good pay ana conditions, but equally he believed they should give good service for the money they received. Yesterday, he went on. he had received a circular issued by Glen Afton Collieries explaining to the company's customers why it was unable to supply the coal required to cook meals for children and families generally. The circular stated: "Our employees are entitled to hold one stop-work meeting of two hours' duration monthly. The following list of 31 stoppages will indicate the extent to which otu 1 ability to supply orders has been affected." The period covered was from May 1 to July 10—two months, said Mr. Holland.

Mines Clear by 3.20 p.m. Daily "I am unable to express an opinion as to whether the stoppages were justified or otherwise." continued Mr. Holland, "but I am impressed by a company which sends a circular to hundreds and hundreds of its customers stating that its inability to supply coal is due to these stoppages." , , The circular also stated that as the result of similar stoppages over earlier months the company's production for the six months ended June 30 had fallen by 22,578 tons, compared with the corresponding period of the previous year. "It is correct to say," the circular proceeded. "that some of our miners are out of the collieries at 2.30 p.m., and that at 3.20 each and every day there is not a miner underground. We can state without fear of contradiction that if all the miners remained working on the coal until 3.30 every day and avoidable idle days and stopwork meetings were eliminated there would be ample coal for domestic trade almost immediately and a full resumption of railway services within a few weeks. The Minister of Supply, Mr. Sullivan, recalling the holding of Ministerial posts by the Hon. R. Masters and Sir Francis Bell when members of the Upper House, said that apparently it was, wrong for the Labour Government to do things that had always been done by Conservative Governments. Referring to the open-cast system, Mr. Sullivan declared that it was absolutely the most promising thing on the horizon as far as the future of the New Zealand coal position was concerned.