Mangere dispute drags on

Press, 4 December 1978, Page 6

Mangere dispute drags on

PA ' Wellington Attempts to solve the sixmonth Mangere Bridge dispute, so that carpenters’ award talks can start in Wellington today, appear to have failed. The national secretary of the Carpenters’ Union, Mr A. Russ, and the national secretary of the Labourers’ Union, Mr" W. Anton, met the Mangere Bridge contractors, Wilkins and Davies, and representatives of the Master Builders’ Federation in Auck-

i land on Friday and Saturday. I The Federation had refused h to negotiate with the Car- C > penters’ Union until work re- h sumed on the bridge, Mr n , Russ said yesterday. Carpenters- and labourers b f employed on the bridge site a . were sacked by Wilkins and - Davies on May 30, after re- L . negotiation of a redundancy F - agreement started a series of P - stoppages. The unions want the sackr ed workers reinstated, and a h - better redundancy agreement, n

They say that the contract) has been suspended by the) Government, and is costing) New Zealand $30,000 a) month. Mr Russ said that the talks [ broke down on Saturday! afternoon. “As far as I am concerned! the talks are stiji on, and if I they want to breach the act) by not attending that’s then lookout,” he said. The company had taken al hard line in Auckland and) made a final offer, to which'

J the unions had until today to :| respond, Mr Russ said. H He declined to give details ■J of the offer, but said that it i would be put to the bridge J workers. The stalemate in the labourers’ award caused by : the bridge dispute has been ■ referred to the Arbitration I Court. Mr J. Murray, the execu- ’ tive director of the Master ! Builders’ Federation, was not i available for comment late ' last evening.