Sugar strike disrupts beer, ice-cream output

Press, 4 July 1985, Page 8

Sugar strike disrupts beer, ice-cream output

PA Auckland Production of beer, icecream, and sweets will be cut in the next week because of a strike at the Chelsea sugar refinery. The 150 sugar workers at the refinery would remain on strike at least another week, said their union secretary, Mr Bernie Scott, yesterday. Dominion Breweries would stop producing beer at the end of this week if it could not get more sugar, said the brewery manager Mr Stewart Lorimer. By the end of next week it would not be able to send out draught, bottled, or canned beer because it would run out of sugar for its filtration process, he said. The production manager of Lion Breweries in Auck-

land, Mr Hugh Thompson, said it had enough sugar for the next week. Mayceys Confectionery, Ltd, had given notices of suspension from tomorrow to 45 of its 60 workers because it was running low on sugar. The managing director, Mr Gordon Stacey, said, “It is totally irresponsible for one lot of workers to take action which affects these workers.” The general manager of Tip Top Ice-Cream, Mr Brent Dowsett, said, “We can last to the end of this week, then we will have problems.” Griffin and Sons, Ltd, would stop producing sweets in its Auckland factory from tomorrow, said the managing director, Mr Darryl Huffman.

The company would consider laying off 150 staff if the strike went beyond Tuesday. Supermarkets were limiting customers to one or two bags of sugar. The managing director of New Zealand Sugar, Dr Peter Dowen, said, “The sugar workers decided yesterday not to return for a week. I expect increasing numbers of manufacturers and retailers will be affected this week,” he said. The company was trying to encourage the union to join it in taking the dispute before an industrial mediator, he said. A conciliator, Mr Gerry Ditchfield, said he had invited the company and union representatives to informal discussions on the dispute today.