Addington Support For Otahuhu

Press, Volume CX, Issue 32320, 11 June 1970, Page 1

Addington Support For Otahuhu

The Addington Railway Workshops branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants has voted in favour of supporting the Otahuhu branch of the union.

The Otahuhu branch is continuing a rolling strike in support of increased wages for semiskilled tradesmen and labourers in spite of being outlawed by the national council of the A.S.R.S. | The result of the secret ballot at the Addington workshops was known yesterday afternoon. A key traverse operator—one of the essential men for running the overhead electric cranes in the workshop—was sent home by the union; The Canterbury branch of the Railway Tradesmen’s Association was holding a meeting last evening to de cide whether to back the dissident Otahuhu and Addington branches of the A.S.R.S. A spokesman said a statement might be made today. The secretary of the Addington branch of the

A.S.R.S. (Mr W. C. 1 Tobeck) had no statement ti make last night. Work Affected Another union official sail that if the management tool any disciplinary actioi against the crane operato who had withdrawn hi labour, then all the. unioi branch membership wouli take counter-action. He sail that the withdrawal of th' key operator would affect th' work of all in the workshop Asked to comment on thsituation, Mr G. Finlayson, o Christchurch. an A.S.R.S national councillor, said i was no surprise to him. “The national council dee Ision not to support the OU huhu branch was a split vot I—s to s—and was carried o the casting vote of the chaii man,” he said. Special Meeting Mr Finlayson said that thi vote was taken at a specia meeting of the council o Friday. He had moved a I amendment that the questio: I of the wage rise for th

, permanent labourers and i semi-skilled groups be the subject of a ballot of the whole membership. That I amendment had been defeated ( —which was “fair enough.” , The motion not to support r the Otahuhu branch, “outlaws ing it and freezing the branch , funds,” had been carried on j the casting vote. j “I want to make it clear , here and now that I think j that decision is regrettable. It ’ means that those men who 3 are fighting for justice, for j a fair wage, have no protec- , tion from the A.S.R.S., and j that their funds have been ■ frozen.” .! Mr Finlayson said he did J not agree with the reported B statement of the general- , secretary of the A.S.R.S. (Mr ..'N. A. Collins, of Wellington) that the Otahuhu branch was being disloyal. The Auckland branch of the s I A.S.R.S. will hold a stop-work meeting today to discuss the n rolling strike at Otahuhu, "I according to the Press AssoI ciation. s The meeting was petitioned by branch members who wanted to know what was going on. The national president of the A.S.R.S. (Mr J. Doherty) will attend. The two national councili j lors appointed to look after II the suspended Otahuhu .[branch’s affairs, Messrs L. S. (Reid and S. Walker, will also t be there, and the suspended j branch chairman. Mr C. Stes wail, and the suspended seci retary, Mr C. S. Duffy, have . been invited. r Meanwhile the rolling 11 strike organised by the Ota- . | huhu branch of the Railway [Tradesmen’s Association con- - [tinued without any apparent -| sign of settlement. si The branch refused to recognise the two men appointed fj by the national council of e A.S.R.S. to look after the i, society’s affairs at Otahuhu I after the suspension of the local branch.