Union members wait for talks

Press, 27 March 1980, Page 28

Union members wait for talks

PA'- ■ Auckland Unions representing about 280 workers; employed by the New Zealand. Farmers Fertiliser . Company hope that talks will begin again on the question of redundancy payments. Representatives of the clerical, storemen and packers, northern drug and chemical workers; 1 and drivers’ unions have failed to reach agreement on redundancy and relocation payments for the workers throughout New Zealand. The unions’ members work in a subsidiary of New Zealand Farmers Fertiliser, the wholesale division of Kempthome Medical Supplies, which is about to close. The company offered redundancy pay, but this was rejected as insufficient by the unions, which also want

higher relocation payment's for their members. About 60 of. the workers are in Auckland. The managing director of the company (Mr P. G. Riddell) has said that the division was closed because of the growth of pharmaceutical co-operatives, which had cut the division’s profitability. “We decided that if we took action now, some staff who were made redundant would have a better chance of finding employment with the co-operatives as they expanded their business to cater for the increased volume in business,” Mr Riddell said. “In some instances this has happened and we hope it will continue,” he said. Mr Riddell said the company’s offer was “better than most” such offers but he would not go into details.