Legal action wanted to end strike

Press, 3 May 1984, Page 1

Legal action wanted to end strike

PA Wellington The Crothalls cleaning company has asked the Minister of Labour, Mr Bolger, to invoke the Commerce Act against striking members of the Wellington Cleaners and Caretakers’ Union.

The company’s industrial relations manager, Mr Lloyd David, said last evening that his company did not have the power to settle the strike, which he believed was designed to break the wage freeze regulations. “This aspect is recognised in section 1198 of the act,” said Mr David.

Under the legislation, striking workers can be fined $l5O, union officials $7OO, and a union $l5OO.

“We have asked the Minister to act in an endeavour to bring this nonsense to an end,” Mr David said.

The union is striking for higher pay. The commercial sector cleaners want $5.05 an hour to bring them into line with school cleaners. The union secretary, Mr Pat Kelly, said invoking the act would not extract the employers (the Berkeley cleaning company is also affected) from the mess

they were in. “They are in this position because of the policies of the Employers’ Association. Crothalls adhere to these policies and they are living in an unreal world if they think the Commerce Act will change our position,” he said.

The union’s own cleaning company, Maikuku, had secured a cleaning contract after offering its services to buildings affected by the .strike at the same contract price charged by the two companies, said Mr Kelly. “With this contract we will show the companies how easy it would be to pay private sector cleaners $5.05 an hour.”

Mr Kelly said the Maikuku company would not expand its business venture beyond the one contract during the strike.