WATERSIDERS AT WELLINGTON

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26475, 17 July 1951, Page 8

WATERSIDERS AT WELLINGTON

ABOUT 200 STRIKERS BEGIN WORK

ANOTHER 300 MAY START TO-DAY

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, July 16. Five months to the day since they stopped work, about 200 members of the former Waterside Workers’ Union commenced work again on the Wellington waterfront to-day. Another 300 men are expected to start work to-morrow. By the end of the week there will probably be the full complement of 1500 unionists working on the wharves.

To-day the union working force totalled 431 men. In addition, there were also 298 servicemen. It is not known yet when all the servicemen will be withdrawn.

Many of the old unionists seemed pleased to be back at work. A big group of the men unloaded urgently-needed coal from the Konui. Other gangs loaded frozen meat and wool for England on the Rangitata. Many of the new men to-day were top-hands. These have to be taken on before less-experienced men can be absorbed. One of these men, an old unionist who was working On the wharf before World War I, said it was quite easy to get back into the swing of the work. “It was terrible doing no work for months.” he said. Nobody expected the strike to go on as long as it did.” A few of the changes he noticed were thp absence of the spelling system, the presence of some new clothes lockers, and the serving of tea in portable canteens on the job. Another old unionist said he did not begrudge the new unionists their time on the wharves during one of the coldest winters Wellington has ever had. Many of the men adopted a neutral attitude. One man summed it up: "There will probably be some friction for a time, but things will settle down." Special police who have been on duty on the Wellington waterfront since the state of emergency was declared on February 22 are expected to be withdrawn to-morrow. The public will then again b® allowed on the wharves without special passes. No trouble was reported tq-day between members of the old union starting work and the new unionists, and conditions on the waterfront are almost back to normal. The Commissioner of Police (Mr J. B. Young) said to-day that the withdrawal of police in other centres from special wharf duty depended on local conditions.