WATERSIDERS AT WELLINGTON

Press, Volume LXXXVII, Issue 26513, 30 August 1951, Page 8

WATERSIDERS AT WELLINGTON

APPLICATIONS FOR EMPLOYMENT

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, August 29. “Every deregistered Wellington watersiaer who applied to return to wharf work after the strike ended has either been accepted, or had a definite opportunity to appeal,” said the secretary of the Wellington branch of the New Zealand Port Employers’ Association (Mr F. A. Conlon) to-day. “This clarifies the position of those who applied for work but were told they were not accepted because the port register was full. Defections in the register have resulted in all deregistered men who applied for work and are acceptable to the employers being accepted. “Since the last group of deregistered men to be accepted received advice to that effect, a number of other applicants whose applications were held over until all the deregistered men were dealt with have received similar advice of acceptance.” Mr Conlon said that about 50 appeals lodged by men who were not acceptable to the employers would be heard by the Port Conciliation Committee. The number of appeals lodged had been greater than that, but some had been made because there had been no room on the port register at the time for the men concerned, and a number had since been accepted for work as vacancies occurred. There had been about 2200 watersiders on the register before the strike, said Mr Conlon. About 1400 of them had applied to resume wharf work, but many of these who had been accepted had not appeared for work.