STARTING TIMES OF TROTS

Press, Volume LXXXII, Issue 25022, 2 November 1946, Page 8

STARTING TIMES OF TROTS

RESENTMENT OF TRAMWAYMEN THREAT OF STOP-WORK MEETING A stop-work meeting of members of the Christchurch Tramway Employees’ Union-is threatened because of dissatisfaction over the finishing times of trotting meetings at Addington. The union claims' that the New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club has failed to carry out an undertaking, given more than a year ago, to start the last race no later than 4 p.m. “Tramwaymen are gravely concerned and resentful over the finishing times of the races,” said the secretary of the union (Mr N. R. Forbes) yesterday. “There is a possibility of drastic action being taken in the near future. There is every possibility of a stop-work meeting of all employees,” he said. Questioned as to the possibility of a stop-work meeting being held at an hour this afternoon when patrons of the cup trotting meeting expected transport to be provided for their return to the city, Mr Forbes gave an assurance that the patrons could confidently expect to be returned from Addington to-day without delay. The stop-work meeting would not be held for “a day or two.” Tramwaymen’s Long Day The New Zealand Metropolitan Trotting Club was the worst offender of the racing and trotting clubs in Christchurch against the agreement reached with the union that the last race at any meeting at Addington and Riccarton was not to start later than 4 p.m., said Mr Forbes. The club had now announced that, after starting its first race at 10.45 a.m., the last race was to begin at 4.7 p.m. By the time the tramway employees had transported the crowds back to the Square and made runs to the various termini, it would be 7 p.m. before they could sign off. For men who had been on duty since 6 a.m. that was asking too much. “The club definitely promised that the last race would be run no later than 4 p.m., and the union did not even receive the courtesy of being asked whether it approved of the last race starting seven minutes later,” said Mr Forbes. f Trots on Show Day A year ago there was great doubt whether transport could be provided for both the races at Addington on Friday and for the Canterbury Agricultural and Pastoral Association’s show on People’s Day, he said. The Minister of Transport (the Hon. J. O’Brien) was in favour of only the show being held, but it was on the “say so” of the union that the trotting pieeting was also held. If the tramway workers had refused to provide a service the trotting meeting would not have been held.

“Mr C. S. Thomas, the president of the trotting club, and Mr H. E. Goggin, the secretary, knew that the trotting meeting on Show Day a year ago was held only with the consent of the tramway workers, but the club has not asked us for our opinion this year,” said Mr Forbes. “The union could have stopped the Show Day trotting meeting last year. The members agreed to work long hours to provide the transport and their officials backed up the club. Now the club has fixed the starting time for the first race at noon. That means a late start and a late ending on a day when the show traffic is, in itself, a problem and a strain to the workers,” concluded Mr Forbes.