Vicar helps keep railway workers on the right track

Press, 16 August 1978, Page 1

Vicar helps keep railway workers on the right track

By

BILL KREGER

Every Friday for the last six months the Vicar of St John's Anglican Church has been strolling through the railways goods yards and sheds at Christchurch. In his own quiet, unobtrusive way he has been responsible for solving marital problems, counselling workers with alcohol or drug problems, helping to obtain legal aid and assisting persons and families with financial and housing problems. The presence of an ordained minister in the railway sheds and yards is not as unusual as it sounds. The Rev. Barry Loveridge is one of 23 industrial chaplains in the Christchurch area, the others being engaged by various companies and public services. Mr Loveridge spends three or four hours at the railways each Friday. In the first six months of his chaplaincy the main thing, he said, “was simply becoming known.” This he has done by stopping to chat with workers, and his good work has spread by word of mouth. In some cases he has held extended counselling sessions with families to try to iron out domestic and financial disputes. Mr Loveridge could be considered the ideal man for the job: the railways yards and sheds are. after all. in his parish. Although first appointed chaplain by Railways management and later asked by the National Union of Railwaymen to serve a sixmonth ’ “apprenticeship,” he is non-partisan when it comes to labourmanagement relations. "I’m not management and I’m not union.” he said. “I'm strictly neutral.” His work does not conflict with that of railways welfare workers. “Mine is a passive role.” he said.

“I’m not out there pushing religion. I’ve found that just being there is the main thing.” He is no stranger to industry. Before being ordained he was at one time a freezing worker and served as a local union secretary. The idea of appointing a chaplain to the Railways came from a traffic-branch staff officer, Mr Alan Grant. After several voluntary sessions at the City Mission, Mr Grant made the acquaintance of the Rev. Dennis O’Connor, associate director of the InterchuTch Trade and Industry Mission. The result was that Mr Loveridge was appointed temporarily last November after getting management

and union approval. This week the National Union of Railwaymen agreed that he had done a good job and endorsed his appointment. Mr Grant is enthusiastic about the chaplain’s role. “It’s quite remarkable some of the things he has accomplished in only a short time,” he said. In addition to his informal counselling work with staff, Mr Loveridge has given talks to Railways trainee courses and plans to address an industrial relations seminar soon. The Railways has onlv one other chaplain. He is in the North Island. Many of Mr Loveridge’s activities involve younger workers who face fatnilv and financial problems for the first time. Typical of most workers’ reaction to Mr Loveridge’s work in the sheds and yards was the comment made by one worker in C shed: “I think this is a great

idea. I’m not religious myself. but I can see that Barry (which is now most workers refer to him) is doing a lot of good around here. You see some of the young blokes around here getting boozed or on drugs or in trouble with the cops and they don’t want to talk about it with their cobbers or their bosses. This is where Barry fills the gap — he is someone they can talk to in confidence, knowing that it will stay confidential. I know he's helped a lot of guys around here who have had problems of one sort or another.” Mr Loveridge’s “territory’” comprises the goods yard, B, C, D and E sheds, Waltham yard and the salaried staff under the goods manager. Although he was approved as chaplain in November, he actually started on his rounds in February. Since then, said Mr Grant, “there has been a marked improvement around here.” His activities are not all of the counselling type: he has been called upon to officiate at funerals and comfort the bereaved relatives of deceased railway workers, some of whom, said Mr Grant, had never been in a church in their lives. The union at first viewed the appointment with some scepticism: it had, after all. been initiated bv the management. At its recent meeting, however, the local branch of the union fully endorsed the chaplaincy. The branch chairman, Mr Ivan Keenan, said the vote in favour of keeping the chaplain was unanimous. “I can only see good in it,” he said. “In the short time he has been here he has helped quite a few. It is quite a step forward and I wouldn’t be too surprised to find that we will need a full-time chaplain in future.”