Disruption to clubs

Press, 27 February 1981, Page 4

Disruption to clubs

Most chartered clubs in Christchurch are expected to open today and tomorrow but will provide only a limited 'service because of a two-day ■strike by employees who are members of the Canterbury Hotel Workers’ Union. i The worst hit is the Christchurch R.S.A. Club which will close today and tomorrow. The club’s bar manager is on ‘holiday and the secretarymanager Mr J. Green is not a trained barman.

: “It just wouldn’t be .possible to open. We have 300 ;to 400 in the club on a Friday and Saturday with two ■bars and three dr four barmen.” Mr Green said the iR.S.A. was strictly a social organisation and would lose .valuable revenue by having to close.

The strike is by all members of the union who come .under the chartered clubs’ and licenced clubs’ award in Christchurch and Rangiora.

At present it does not invlove Ashburton and Timaru. A stop-work meeting of more than 100 members in Christchurch yesterday decided to strike, each Thursday and Friday until the em-

ployers rturn to conciliation. The secretary of the union, Mr G. D. Harding, said that the vote was two to one in favour of strike action. The union will take action if clubs try to use volunteers to reThe Commercial Travellers’ Association will today open from noon to 2 p.m. then close until it re-opens at 4 p.m. then closed at 7 p.m. It would close tomorrow, said ‘the president, Mr R. Mercer. The Riccarton Working-

men’s. Club will be open from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. then from 4 p.m. until 7 p.m. today and tomorrow. place' union labour, but Mr Harding said that the Chartered Club’s Association had undertaken not to attempt to use volunteers. Mr Harding said the only people who could work while | the strike was on were the manager and a head steward if he was exempt from the union because of a salary bar. The strike will hit clubs at their busiest time of the week. “We’re'going to be in all sorts of strife,” said the president of the New Brighton Working Men’s Club, Mr J.

Aldridge, v. Some clubs were holding executive meetings last evening to decide what action to take while the strike is on. Mr Harding said that the union would exempt any club which was prepared to sign the agreement to include a 14.6 per cent wage inctease and "to retain existing provisions on casual workers and contracting out.