Govt says it won’t change rules for meat workers

Press, 1 May 1984, Page 1

Govt says it won’t change rules for meat workers

The Prime Minister, Sir Robert Muldoon, stepped into the freezing works rolling strike yesterday and said that employers should talk to workers if there were any “separate and special” cases for wage-freeze exemptions.

The Government would not change wage regulations to give meat workers a pay rise, he said. Sir Robert said the rolling strikes meant that at least one, and possibly more, freezing works were threatened with being closed. It was “quite the wrong time” for the union to be taking strike action, he said. Sir Robert made his comments after he telephoned the Meat Workers’ Union’s national secretary, Mr A. J. Kennedy. Freezing workers from eight plants in Otago and Southland walked off the job yesterday in the first of a series of rolling strikes by the Meat Workers’ Union. Sir Robert said that Mr' Kennedy was arguing that there were some longstanding issues “not in the mainstream of wage negotiations” that the employers would not talk about. He said he had told Mr Kennedy, “and we’ve confirmed it in Cabinet,” that if the issues could be brought inside the rules of wagefreeze exemptions they could be discussed and dealt with. Exemptions had been enacted for other industries, essentially in the area of new work, Sir Robert said. He said he had told Mr Kennedy that there was “no possible chance that the Government will agree to any departure from the wage regulations for the freezing industry. “In so far as things that

are covered by new regulations, the management attitude is quite proper because there’s no point in discussing them. “But if there are things that can be brought into the field of exceptions then I see no reason why they can’t be discussed and dealt with. “If, as he claims, there are such things the employers should discuss them and if necessary approach the Minister for regulations.” The Cabinet regularly approved special regulations, Sir Robert said, after they had been prepared by the Minister of Labour, Mr Bolger. The special regulations covered such areas as new work which needed separate cover. Mr Bolger said yesterday the freezing workers’ rolling strikes were a nonsense and the Government would not intervene “at this stage.” Freezing companies had to decide how they would respond, and the Government would not interfere “at this juncture,” Mr Bolger said. He said Cabinet would discuss the action by freezing workers and would intervene if necessary. “The, whole scenario is a nonsense in terms of any common sense means of running an enterprise and equally a nonsense of any common sense way of a union trying to influence its employers or the Government,” Mr Bolger said. The Government would

“disregard any suggestion they have a case while this sort of nonsense goes on.” Mr Bolger also said he would be “most surprised” if the unions had a case anyway for across-the-board wage negotiations. “That industry is under very tight financial problems. “I wouldn’t expect at all that any form of a general application could be entertained.” Mr Bolger said it appeared the strikers were “outside the confines of the law” because “clearly they haven’t given the requisite advice” in advance of action. The executive director of the Freezing Companies’ Association, Mr P. D. Blomfield, said yesterday he was surprised by the number of works involved. The stoppage would cause considerable inconvenience for the plants, farmers and transport firms and significant loss in pay for the strikers. The association executive would be “considering its options” but was not likely to comply with the union request, he said. “The Freezing Companies’ Association will not join the union in an approach to Government to reopen conciliation which is going to discuss wage-related issues,” he said. “The Government has given everybody an ?8 a week increase, and that’s it.” There was likely to be a “response” from the association in a day or two, he said. Mr Kennedy said last evening that strikes held today would also be in a particular region, rather than different works in different areas.

The decision to implement the rolling stoppages was made by the management committee, he said, although branch secretaries had received strong endorsement for the move from rank and file members. The only abattoirs involved in the stoppages would be those that had export licences, said Mr Kennedy. Asked whether the union was prepared to negotiate on a conditions basis rather than to attempt departure from the wage regulations, Mr Kennedy said the union had asked employers for a joint approach by both of them to Government, so that the matter could be taken to the Conciliation Council. “The present legislation precludes us from doing this,” he said. Federated Farmers was strongly opposed to the rolling stoppages in the freezing industry, said the acting president of Federated Farmers, Mr Peter Elworthy. The strike in Southland and Otago was illegal and farmers would be looking for the penalty provisions in the Industrial Relations Act to be invoked, he said. “The meat industry is in a serious financial situation and cannot afford such stoppages. All parties in the industry have been conferring and agree that unless productivity increases and costs are lowered there will be further- plant closures and job losses,” Mr Elworthy said. The further thoughtless action on behalf of the unions could do no more

than exacerbate this situation, said Mr Elworthy. The assistant secretary (industrial relations) of the Labour Department, Mr Ralph Stockdill, said the department would investigate whether a breach of the Industrial Relations Act had occurred as a result of the strikes once a complaint had been made to the department by a company affected by them. He said last evening that he was not aware of any complaints having been made at this stage.

Stock will be accepted at Canterbury works today, according to spokesmen for Canterbury Frozen Meat Company and Waitaki N.Z. Refrigerating, Ltd.

Mr Max Willyams, operations manager for Waitaki, said that the company’s policy was that it was in business to process stock as offered and stopping production would not gain anything.

The company had three works in Otago closed by the strike yesterday. The general manager of C.F.M., Mr J. J. Drayton, said that the company would continue to put up stock but that the matter would be discussed at the industry level tomorrow. Mr Willyams said that the freezing workers and officials should be prosecuted under section 125 (a) of the Industrial Relations Act for failing to give three days notice of strike action. Either the Minister of Labour or the Labour Department should bring the prosecutions, he said. Killing stopped at all eight. freezing works in Otago and Southland yesterday with up to 9000 members of the Otago-Southland union walking off.

At Burnside in Dunedin, about 14,000 sheep and lambs were left in the yards, with about 30 cattle. Nojorocessing had been doneflt the works before

the 800 men walked off the job.

But this was not the case at either Pukeuri in Oamaru, or Finegand in Balclutha.

At Pukeuri, where up to 900 men downed tools, 1100 lambs had been processed, leaving another 12,000 in the yard, while at Finegand about 800 sheep and lambs had been dealt with before the strike call came. About 1000 men then left the South Otago works with another 5200 sheep and lambs in the yards. The campaign of 24-hour stoppages is a protest over the Freezing Companies’ Association refusal to join the union in an approach to the Government on conciliation talks. The chairman of the Meat Board, Mr Adam Begg, said the planned rolling stoppages by meat workers which began yesterday were deplorable and irresponsible.

It was deplorable to leave stock for killing in the yards no matter the “rights or wrongs” involved. Doing that was counter-productive to the workers’ cause, he said.

“Mr Kennedy should take a more realistic look at what is in the industry for them,” Mr Begg said.

“It is irresponsible, and I think it will rebound on them.”