Wage talks delayed to clinch proposals

Press, 17 July 1980, Page 1

Wage talks delayed to clinch proposals

PA Wellington / Union- advocates have decided to wait and see if more talks can result in agreement on proposals to restructure wage bargaining.

About 80 delegates met yesterday in Wellington. Afterwards, the president of the Federation of Labour (Mr W. J. Knbx) said they had agreed to reconvene the meeting on August 4. In the meantime, they have given approval to the executive to continue talks with the employers and the Government. A further attempt to get closer to finalising a farreaching set of proposals, including wage indexation or a return to general wage orders, a big minimum wage increase and a

move front craft ;to in-dustry-based unions, could take place at' Parliament Buildings today. - . ; So far - the. F.O.L. ’ had heard nothing from the Government and Mr Knox said he- was not making the first approach.

Their next meeting would’ include the Prime Minister (Mr Muldobn) who was at Tarawa when the .tripartite talks re- 1 sumed on Tuesday. If no progress is . made,? employers 'could face wage, claims of about, 30 per cent, combining catch - up for the effects of inflation until'June this year, plus an increase to cover anticipated inflation for the next year. The August 4 meeting will not greatly affect the start of the wage round, although several unions, including the drivers, were

to start negotiations at theend of this month. ’ Mr. Muldoon said last evening that he was pleased at the attitude adopted by the F.O.L. at its meeting yesterday. Mr Muldoon said in reply to a question that he hoped the delay would give the parties time to reach agreement on a wage package before the major round of negotiations started. . . The decision by the F.O.L. to delay the round for/ a week “certainly made a lot of sense,” Mr Muldoon said. -

The Opposition' shadow Minister of Labour, Mr T. K. Burke, said the Government had been “caught on the hop” by the F.O.L.’s comprehensive and well researched proposals for a wages and income policy. There still appeared to

be a vacuum when it came to Government thinking on industrial relations, he said. , “That vacuum became apparent during the Kinleith dispute. Now the F.O.L. has come forward with a sound, reasoned policy only to find that the Government is not in a position to have serious discussions simply because the Government still has no idea on where it is going with industrial relations,” Mr Burke said. It was difficult to accept the Government had entered the talks in good faith when , its chief negotiator, the Minister of Foreign. Affairs (Mr Talboys) was under instruction from Mr Muldoon not to reach a settlement in the meantime.