New Zealanders spark discontent

Press, 1 July 1986, Page 36

New Zealanders spark discontent

From

OWEN GILL

in Melbourne

New trouble has flared over New Zealanders working in the Australian shearing Industry.

Resentment over New Zealanders taking local jobs boiled over in the Queensland town of Longreach at the weekend, when 80 shearers met to discuss a gang of New Zealanders who have snapped up a big slice of work in the area. The contractor for the New Zealanders, Mr Buck Little, was questioned intensely during the meeting over assertions that the New Zealanders had worked outside the award. A New Zealander said there had been heated

verbal arguments in the local hotel over the issue. The trouble is reminiscent of the 1983 national shearers’ strike in Australia, which ended in two New Zealanders being injured in a shooting in the Victorian town of Coleraine.

The 1983 problems started over wlde-comb shearing gear, which is common in New Zealand and had started to appear in Australia. Australians, blaming New Zealanders for bringing in the wide comb stopped Work for eight weeks, in a bitter dispute.

A union official in Queensland said yesterday: “There’s a feeling over New Zealanders getting work while Aus-

tralians are sitting round.”

Mr Little responded with: “It’s only bad blood because we are doing more sheep than anyone else.”

Mr Little, himself an Australian, has 28 New Zealanders in his 60-man shearing gang which is based at Muttaburra, 150 km north of Longreach. One of the New Zealanders, Mr Doug Waerea, said they moved to Australia during the eight-month shearing season but went home for four months at Christmas.

“We get loud-mouths sounding off at the pub and there’s a few arguments,” Mr Waerea said.