Not guilty say rugby and racing

Press, 19 August 1983, Page 26

Not guilty say rugby and racing

PA Auckland Rugby and racing administrators have rejected a suggestion that their midweek events are to blame for planned absenteeism by meat-workers. The secretary of the New’ Zealand Racing Conference, Mr H. J. Poland, said that mid-week race meetings were not put on to encourage people to take time off work, but were aimed at a different group. The Auckland Rugby Union’s deputy chairman, Mr L. W. Deas, said he believed that industrial stoppages around the country would be greater in number than mid-week rugby matches.

The two men were responding to a claim by the president of the Auckland Freezing Workers’ Union, Mr Frank Barnard, that employers should blame the rugby and racing administrators who put on mid-week events, rather than “having a go” at the

workers who attended. Mr Barnard was commenting, in turn, on a claim by the Meat Board that absenteeism and planned absenteeism contributed significantly to costs in the meat industry.

Mr Poland said the midweek meetings were put on for those such as the selfemployed, retired, unemployed, shift-workers, those on leave and housewives.

Racing administrators, he said, were obviously not catering for anyone who took time off work on the basis that they were sick. Mr Deas said “The racing conference has more midweek meetings than rugby has.”

“I understand they do have mid-week cricket matches and other significant events from time to time . . . overseas warships and royal visits. “I do not know if he (Mr Barnard) has any count of the number of people absent on those days.”