FIREMEN END STRIKE Talks to resume

Press, Volume CXV, Issue 33739, 11 January 1975, Page 1

FIREMEN END STRIKE Talks to resume

Fifty Christchurch firemen marched off a picket line and into the Christchurch Central Fire Station at 6 p.m. yesterday to end the first strike by any metropolitan fire-fighters.

The stoppage, by all Christchurch’s 206 regular firemen, had lasted 34 hours.

A few seconds before the firemen went back to full duties, 22 military firemen, who were part of a contingent of 47 who took over the regular men’s duties, boarded an R.N.Z.A.F. bus and left. The strike was ended by a vote of about 180 to 20 at a meeting in the Town Hall yesterday morning. The men returned to work at 6 p.m.

as that was the normal end the day shift. The meeting was addressed by the secretary of the Federation of Labour (Mr W. J. Knox) who had been asked to “assist” after the Minister of L-' our (Mr Faulkner) threatened to deregister the union if the strike continued.

Deregistration was cancelled by the Minister when he heard the strike was ending. Mr Knox, after the meeting, said: “It was unfortu-

Talks ‘urgent’

nate that the F.O.L. did not know the facts of the dispute sooner. We now know the true facts and we believe the firemen’s claim has some validity.” Asked if work towards ending the strike had been hard, Mr Knox said: “I would say it was.” On Thursday night he had discussed matters with the secretary of the Christchurch firemen’s union (Mr G. G. Walker) and Canterbury Trades Council representatives for more than three hours. Mr Knox said he did not expect the settlement of the Christchurch strike to have repercussions in other centres, “but if it does it is something they will have to face up to.” The strike was clearly ended only by the intervention of the F.O.L. The vote to resume work and renew discussions with the Christchurch Fire Board had been taken on the F.O.L.’s recommendation, Mr Knox said. Though the strike has ended, the dispute which started it — over allowances — continues. The sum involved is believed to be about $ll to $l4 a week for each fireman.

A condition of the return, to work is that new discussions between the union and the Fire Board be started “urgently.” A Christchurch industrial commissioner, Mr John Michaels, has been appointed by the Minister to be chairman.

It was the collapse of similar talks earlier this week which led to the strike. The new talks will begin on Monday.

The ban on routine duties at Timaru, whose firemen are in the same union as

those at Christchurch, also continues. **We have a responsibility to deal with this absolutely as fast as we can,” Mr Walker said. “It will probably be done on Monday.”

The dispute at Timaru was over smaller sums of money, he said. The Christchurch Chief Fire Officer (Mr B. F. Hyland) said that the return to routine would not take long. All fire-fighting equipment had been kept in good order since the ban on routine duties began on December 16.

The president of the firemen’s- unfon (Mr T. S. Scott), said at the end of the strike: “The fire-fighters of Canterbury thank the citizens of Christchurch for their support during the strike. We assure them that this action was not taken lightly, but in this case our responsibilities to our families over-rode our dedication to the city.” Mr Scott, who is an officer in the fire brigade, said that many telegrams and telephone calls of support, from Christchurch and elsewhere, had been received.