RIVAL INTERESTS

Press, Volume LXXII, Issue 21792, 26 May 1936, Page 12

RIVAL INTERESTS

FORMATION OF UNIONS EMPLOYEES IN WAREHOUSES [THE PEBSB Special Senice.] AUCKLAND, May 25. Rival interests among warehousemen have not yet reconciled their points of view on the question of the identity of the unions to represent them. The Storemen, Packers’, and Warehousemen's Union claims that it is the organisation to represent warehouse employees, but those opposing this claim say that its membership has been confined to storemen and packers. When the guild of soft goods warehousemen held meetings to consider the forming of an) industrial union to represent that branch of the industry, representatives of the Storemen and Packers’ Union made overtures for the merging of the guild membership into their union. Conflict of opinion on the question was apparent not only in Auckland, but also in Wellington. An alternative proposal for the formation of one big union to represent all branches of warehouse industry has now apparently been abandoned; at any rate several sections such as the wholesale druggist suppliers are forming their separate unions, and are making application for registration. Soft goods warehousemen in Auckland have not actually formed a union, although it is proposed that they should do so by the process of reorganising the rules and converting their guild into an industrial union. The, guild has an agreement with the employers on wages, and it is recognised that this will need revision, particularly in view of the changed conditions brought about by the new industrial legislation. The position for the guild is complicated, however, by the circulation of claims for an award covering its members put forward, it is said, by representatives of the Storemen and Packers’ Union. These proposals are for substantial increases in wages, especially for the lower paid employees. “We regard these proposals in the nature of a bait to our members,” said an officer of the guild. “However, we have been told by members of our central executive that the Minister for Labour is quite sympathetic to the idea of changing our guild into a separate industrial union, and we are going ahead with our proposals.”