Industrial moves ‘outdated’

Press, 17 July 1980, Page 18

Industrial moves ‘outdated’

The Mangere Bridge dispute is a monument to New Zealand’s ineptitude in industrial relations, according to a visiting professor of engineering from the University of Auckland, Professor P. W. Taylor. Professor Taylor will present the 1980 Hopkins Lecture, titled “Engineers — Leaders or Followers?” in the Christchurch Town Hall this evening. The Hopkins lecture is given annually by a speaker from New Zealand or overseas on a subject related to the engineering profpcqinn.

Professor Taylor is head of the -Department of Civil Engineering at the University of. Auckland. His engineering experience- includes a period in Iran with the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, research in soil mechanics at Cambrdige University, and structural design study with the London County Council. Yesterday he said he was critical of the industrial relations problems associated with the engineering industry, and their effect on the New Zealand economy. He was concerned that “mil-

lions of dollars of taxpayers’ money” was lying idle at the site of the uncompleted Mangere Bridge in Auckland. The problem was not only outdated legislation, but people’s attitudes, he said. “New Zealanders have very Victorian attitudes to industrial relations. We tend to think of things in Marxist terms of class warfare. This is out of date. We need a spirit of co-operation, rather than antagonism.” People were beginning to realise that to overcome economic problems in the l

1980 s, it was essential to have harmonious industrial relations, he said. In the training of professional engineers more emphasis was being placed on mangement skills and continuing education. The number of women entering the engineering profession in New Zealand was still “surprisingly low — lower than most English speaking countries.” Professor Taylor attributed this also to the “Victorian attitude” of many New Zealanders.