Tunnel staff stop-work

Press, 9 November 1978, Page 7

Tunnel staff stop-work

Preparations have been made to call a special meeting of the ChristchurchLyttelton Road Tunnel Authority should the need arise

as a result of a stop-work meeting by the tunnel staff today.

i The meeting follows a previous stop-wo_rk meeting held on October 25 when a threat to strike was made unless an assurance was received within 15 days that the tun-| nel staff would remain intact! as a division of Government.! The authority’s general! {manager (Mr L. E. Olliver)! said that the time had ex-\ Spired and as far as he knew! ! the authority had received no : (assurance from the Govern-! Iment. | Today’s stop-work meet-! ling will be held in the; I Tunnel Authority building;! ' the previous one was held ad rlthe Trade Union Centre.

It is believed that the tunnel workers will stop work at 2 p.m., and that the tunnel will be toll-free until the' end of the meeting. Mr Olliver said that with the amount of shipping at

the port, including the big bulk phosphate carrier Kolle' D, there might be more, problems this time resulting from the lack of tunnel: traffic control. On the last occasion Lyt-' telton was relatively free ofi shipping on the day the; meeting was held but speeding commercial traffic caused worrying moments for the: two tunnel traffic staff on duty. | Cine emergency traffic; (vehicle will be on standby; I but Mr Olliver said there' |would be insufficient staff to; jcope with an emergency. I He was not aware if any! other form of traffic control j i would be brought to the tun-! inel while the meeting was ini progress. Authority members met; ytunnel staff on Monday in a! ;,bid to smooth the situation; J but it was still decided to | ;proceed with the stop-work'

- meeting. ... ■ ; Should the tunnel staff de- - cide to strike, a special meet- ■' ing of the authority would decide whether to close the i tunnel in the interests of! : safety, Mr Olliver said.