Male bastion under female threat?

Press, 22 September 1980, Page 10

Male bastion under female threat?

A “jealously guarded” male domain, tire working men’s clubs, seem destined to open their doors to female members. Officials of several workingmen’s clubs have said that an underlying feeling existed within the clubs that they might soon have to let women join if they wanted to.

Some Christchurch flubs already have women members. One club has two women on the executive. However, not all men favour the idea.

The working men’s clubs, Riccarton and Oxford, recently rejected a move to accept female members. In Oxford, three women were nominated as members, but the half-yearly meeting of the club last week failed to support a move to change

the rules on membership. The club’s president, Mr R. Cottam, said some members felt that women already had the rights of membership, except for voting. He said that women would eventually become members of the club. “The membership was divided on the vote, but the club will remain a jealously guarded place to get away from the wife. Some members just don’t want to change. “The time is coming when we might be forced to accept women members,” said Mr Cottam. It was the second time that Oxford had considered admitting women members. The proposal was rejected about two years ago, although no women had applied for membership.

The Riccarton Working Men’s Club rejected the move to change its membership rules by only a few votes. The move'to admit women members came from the membership. No women had applied for membership. The Human Rights Act makes an allowance for clubs such as working men’s clubs to restrict their membership on the ground of sex.

Mr Sanford said that about 48 of New Zealand’s 120 working men’s clubs had women members. Officials of clubs with mixed membership say that the women fit in well.

Table tennis, darts, and indoor bowls are reported to have “boomed” at the Papanui Working Men’s Club since women were admitted as members.