Rubber workers’ dispute continues
The rubber workers’ dispute looks likely to continue until after the Christmas break. No further progress was made at a meeting of employers yesterday, and the employers’ advocate, Mr Neil McPhail, said further talks would probably not occur until after Christmas. . “No new strategy was decided on,” he said. Today is the last opportunity for the union to approach us before Christmas, otherwise it will just have to wait.” The employers maintain that the four-week dispute over pay relativity and bonus issues should be taken to the Arbitration Court, but the rubber workers’ union has voted strongly to reject going to arbitration, and claims the issues should be resolved in a formal meeting or award conciliation
talks. The union secretary, Mir Roger Brott, said the essence of the whole dispute was over the total wage packet. “If the employers believe the workers would spend one month out of work at this time of year for a $1.60 wage difference then they’re very mistaken,” he said. “We are looking at the total package, and the question of award wages is regarded as something of a sacred cow to us. We’re not ‘holding out’ for something, it’s a right we’re entitled to.” Mr Brott said the union did not need a third party to tell it to take a reduction in wages. “We said to the employers we were prepared to meet them and discuss the dispute, all the/matters arising from it and all the
matters incidental to it” he said. “We want both parties to sit down and attempt to ■ reconcile the differences between them.”
He said they had no new plans to meet the employers today.
“Many workers are suffering badly, and there will probably be some resignations in the industry. We can only hope now that the employers begin to feet like Ebenezer Scrooge in the eleventh hour.”
Suggestions that the rubber factories were well stocked and that the strike was not particularly 1 hurting the employers were partly rejected by Mr Brott. • “In some regards the factories are well stocked, but the/goods still have to be; taken" to the shops, and the workers aren’t there to do, that,” he said.'
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Press, 24 December 1985, Page 5
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366Rubber workers’ dispute continues Press, 24 December 1985, Page 5
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