Strike over ‘sleeper’ ends

Press, 4 March 1981, Page 1

Strike

over ‘sleeper’ ends

Rubber workers at the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company in Christchurch returned to work yesterday afternoon after striking for a day over the dismissal of a worker who was found asleep while on night shift. The man, who works as a rubber cur'er at the factory, is in his. early 20s and was found asleep on a bench outside-the factory at 1.30 a.m. last Saturday, 20 minutes after his “smoko” break was supposed to have ended.

The company offered to suspend the man for four weeks while discussions were held with the union over an appropriate penalty, but the Canterbury Rubber Workers’ Union rejected the offer and the rubber workers went on strike. The company said it had no alternative but to dismiss the man.

.The rubber workers held a meeting yesterday afternoon and decided to return to work while taking up the case through the normal grievance procedures laid down in the Industrial Relations Act. The industrial relations manager, Mr G. Lea, said that the night shift supervisor had observed the worker sleeping “for some minutes,” but did not know exactly how long he had been asleep. “He was found sleeping outside under the stars, lying flat on his back on a bench with his hands under his head, snoring,” said Mr Lea.

The company had a supplementary or house agreement with the union whereby sleeping on the job is deemed to be "serious misconduct for which dismissal is justified, but the agreement provides for a lesser pen-

alty if the company so desires. Mr Lea said that the agreement was reviewed annually and was subject to the union’s agreement. The union’s secretary, Mr L.G. Morel, said that the company had scheduled the worker to work 32 hours in a 48-hour period because of a demand for the company’s products. The man’s rostered shifts were: Thursday, 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Friday, 3 a.m. to 3 pm., and 11 pm. on Friday to 7 am. on Saturday. “We say this is an irresponsible act by the company and in breach of the award, which provides for a limit of hours worked." Mr Morel said that the man accepted the hours to help the company out and actually came to work on

Friday night, in spite of his' tiredness, to unlock the stack area because he was given the key. After finishing his; early shift on Friday the man had “gone out with the. boys.” He had not wanted to return to work,, but had done so out of a sense of loyalty to the company. "He virtually collapsed from a lack- of sleep,” Mr More! said. The union declined the offer of a four-week suspension because . it believed the man should have been disciplined under a section of the agreement which carried a lesser penalty, such ,as a reprimand. The' union had- previously had a ban on the working of more than eight hours a week .of overtime but had lifted the ban because the company was not happy with it. ’ ’ .