Stoppage At Westfield

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31678, 14 May 1968, Page 28

Stoppage At Westfield

(N.Z. Preu Association) AUCKLAND, May 13. Two hundred boners’ labourers walked off the job at the Westfield Freezing Company today because their union secretary, Mr T. P. Kelly, was not at a stop-work meeting to report on bonus talks with the company. The union president, Mr F. E. Barnard, told the men that Mr Kelly had to be at hospital for treatment—he was taken ill recently at the Federation of Labour conference. The men: "Well, we won’t work until he is here.” And they walked off the job until tomorrow at 8 a.m., when they will hold another stop-work meeting. As a result, the company stopped its beef kill for today and tomorrow, and by

noon 250 more workers had to be sent home as there was nothing for them to do. Mr Barnard said later: “Their action is against the advice of the officials.” He asked the men to work normally today and receive Mr Kelly’s report tomorrow. The Westfield general manager, Mr A. J. Holland, said that an agreement was made with the union on April 19 but on April 29 the boners’ labourers wanted it re-negoti-ated. Mr Kelly and the union’s branch president, Mr E. Evans, were then at the F.O.L. conference. The men did not do their work as normal but last Tuesday the local union persuaded them to work normally. Mr Holland said the dispute meant that the works was losing a kill of 1100 head of stock daily.