NEGOTIATIONS WITH AIR CONTROLLERS

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30631, 23 December 1964, Page 14

NEGOTIATIONS WITH AIR CONTROLLERS

'UtK Zealand Preu AuoctaUou

WELLINGTON, December 22. The State Services Commission has forestalled the chance of a curtailment of air traffic during the peak travel holiday period. It has offered to resume negotiations with air traffic controllers at 9 o’clock tomorrow morning.

The controllers have been working on their ease for improved salaries and conditions since November last year and have been in fruitless negotiation with the commission since July.

Negotiations broke down last week and member*. backed by the Public Service Association, were considering their next move when the 'ommission announced late today it would resume conciliation tomorrow.

The controllers are reported to be about 30 short of establishment. The effect of this it to increase each man's work by about 15 per cent. This is considered unsatisfactory by controllers because erf the danger of an unduly high work load affecting their skill. There is a world-wide shortage of air traffic controllers. The New Zealand shortage is said to result partly from the growing number of upgraded airports being brought into commission and partly from what are described as inadequate salary scales. This is reported to have made recruiting difficult and the commission is known to be delaying a further recruiting campaign in Britain till the present dispute is settled PS A. WARNING The Public Service Association warned today that air traffic control staff might be forced to take immediate steps to limit the number of hours they were required to work if the State Services

Commission did not offer some hope of relief. In a statement, the association said the highly-skill-ed air traffic control staff whose work was vital to the

lives and safety of the travelling public had been treat-

ed with “disgraceful indiffer- ' ence” by the State employing 1 authorities. The statement said the control staff might be forced, in the interests of public safety,’ to reduce working hours or work to rules. “Artificial limits placed on salaries and conditions of em-

ployment, in a field where the A market is internationally competitive, have resulted in serious staff shortages.” Virtually nothing has been done to make air traffic control work in New Zealand permanently attractive to people of the calibre and training required. "LONG HOURS” “As a result, many of the men in our air traffic control service are required to work excessively long and arduous hours, and are subject to callbacks at short notice at inconvenient times—especially at night and during week-ends and normal public holidays. “Over many months, the association has tried to persuade the State Services Commission that something substantial and urgent needs to be done—so far without suc“Accordingly, the commission must take full responsibility for the situation, and for any consequences it may have. “With the high degree of concentration required of

these men, they cannot be expected to go on indefinitely working to schedules teat require them to take responsibility of other peoples lives when they are fatigued." If they could see the chance of some improvement in their conditions, it is possible their morale could be boosted sufficiently for them to face the additional hardships of the holiday season and the peak traffic period facing them. STEPS THEE ATES ED “But if the present situation appears likely to continue without relief, then they may be forced, in the interests of public safety, to take some immediate steps themselves in the way of reducing the number of hours they are working or otherwise working to | rule, “If they decide to do so, it will be with the full support of the association, and any interference with plane schedules or any inconvenience to the public travelling by air will be solely the responsibility of the State Services Commission and its advisers. They could and should have foreseen the present dangers a long, long while ago,” the statement said.