Big transport pay rises ‘causing chaos’

Press, 30 August 1985, Page 4

Big transport pay rises ‘causing chaos’

By

TIM DONOGHUE,

NZPA political reporter, in Christchurch Wage increases between 25 per cent and 40 per cent being paid in the road transport industry are causing chaos before the wage round, says an employer advocate. Mr John Button said last evening that the increases were being paid in Auckland and Christchurch.

He told NZPA that the problem concerned the freight forwarders’ stores award and the general stores award.

“The freight forwarders’ award provides for rates of pay ranging from 25 per cent to 40 per cent above

the general stores award,” he said.

Twelve companies in Auckland and two in Christchurch had agreed to move their storemen from the general stores award to the freight forwarders’ award.

“This means storemen will be getting $7O to $llO more a week,” Mr Button said. Industrial muscle was being applied by distribution unions to achieve the increases.

Mr Button said container storage depots, terminals and wharves were picketed in Auckland. The distribution unions’ secretary, Mr Rob Campbell, told NZPA in Christchurch that he had no comment, to make on Mr ButF

ton’s allegations. “Contractual arrangements between the union and employers in the forwarding and transport industry are a private matter,” Mr Campbell said. Mr Button said carriers paid storemen according to the general stores award. “For obvious reasons Rob Campbell’s people have been trying to get the freight forwarders’ stores award extended across to the road carrying industry,” he said.

On August 16, after the distribution unions took a case to the Arbitration Court, the Court ruled in the employers’ favour on the issue.

“The decision stated that

the freight forwarders’ stores award could not cover the road transport industry,” Mr Button said. “The unions targeted certain companies. They’ve said to them, ‘Sign that you will pay according to the freight forwarders’ stores award or we’ll picket if you decline’.”

The ploy resulted in industrial chaos on the eve of the 1985-86 wage round, he said.

“There is a prospect of a flow on into the manufacturing sector and increased costs to the agricultural sector which are principal users of road transport,” Mr Button said.

Employers had approached Mr Campbell with

the suggestion that a committee of inquiry under Section 121 of the Industrial Relations Act should be established in an attempt to define the freight forwarding industry.

“The employers see that trying to keep the freight forwarders’ document completely out of the road transport industry is lost because companies have already signed,” he said.

“We thought we would offer a compromise to try to define the freight forwarding industry in an attempt to control the situation. The response has been, ‘No thanks, we’re doing O.k’ under the present arrangements’.”

He believed the Minister of Labour, Mr Rodger, had spoken to Mr Campbell about the matter. “It is chaos. We have the award round coming up and we are looking at a 25 per cent to 40 per cent wage movement for some people before it even gets under way,” Mr Button said.

The unions claimed that companies which signed were freight forwarders but the employers viewed them as road carriers.

Mr Button said freight forwarders generally did not run their own transport fleet, unlike road carriers which paid their people under the general stores awar/j. , /