A FIVE-DAY WEEK

Press, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22135, 3 July 1937, Page 8

A FIVE-DAY WEEK

BREWERY WORKERS' CLAIM

DISTRIBUTION OF FORTY HOURS

Employees under the brewers', maltsters', and related trades award, and under the brewers' drivers' award, are seeking to have the awards amended by the Arbitration Court so that the 40-hour week will be worked on five days, with overtime payment for work done outside the five days. An application to the Court was made yesterday before Mr Justice O'Regan, and Messrs W Cecil Prime (employers' representative), and A. L. Monteith (employees' representative). Mr B. O'Connor for the union (which covers workers under both awards) said that when the hours were first reduced to 40 the men had worked seven and a quarter hours on five days of the week, and three and three-quar-ters on Saturday. This had been unsatisfactory, and a skeleton staff had then worked on Saturday, and three men were allowed a half-day off during the week. The union desired now that a definite five-day week should be established, and that those who were required by the nature of the work to come back on Saturday morning should be paid overtime. It was contended that deliveries on Saturday morning could be discontinued, but it was admitted that the work required a certain number of men on Saturday. " w , Thomas Charles Lane, a malthouse worker, said that the practice of employers was not uniform in arranging the hours. Men worked on Saturday morning and were given time eff during the week as compensation. Work on Saturday afternoon and Sunday was paid for. Robert James Milligan, a header-up at the Dominion Yeast Company, Ltd., said that this firm had allowed a fiveday week except for the first fortnight after the 40-hour week was introduced. The only exception was that three maltsters and another man "who seemed to want work only when overtime was about," worked on Saturday. Mr D. I. Macdonald, who appeared for the employers, said that everything possible had been done to meet the requirements of the industry. All essential work had been restricted to five days of the week, but continuous work was necessary in the malt departments, and on Saturday brewers were required to be in attendance, and it was necessary to employ drivers for delivery. He referred to awards in the North Island which provided for work on Saturday, and said that there was no reason why the local award should be on a different basis. Evidence on behalf of the employers was given by. Alexander Bruce Duncan, head brewer for New Zealand Breweries, Ltd., who described the continuous processes necessary in some of the work at breweries, and by James Howard Hewlett, of the malt deoartment of the Canterbury Seed Compaq', Ltd. Mr O'Connor later said that one of the features of the present arrangement was that men working on Saturday were sometimes given the compensatory half-day during the week in the morning. Duncan in reply to a question from Milligan, which his Honour allowed. though stating it to be irregular, later said that delivery on Saturday could not be discontinued at certan seasons, and especially on race days. The Court reserved its decision.