Kawerau workers apply for the dole

Press, 12 September 1986, Page 8

Kawerau workers apply for the dole

By

PATRICIA HERBERT

in Wellington Almost 750 workers hit by the Kawerau lock-out have applied for the unemployment benefit, according to the Social Welfare Department. The figures to date are that 742 applications have been lodged, 592 by mill workers, of which 276 have been granted and one declined, and a further 150 from workers in related industries. The information was given in Parliament yesterday in reply to a ques-

tion by National’s spokesman on industrial relations, Mr Bill Birch. Mr Birch intends to introduce a private members’ bill aimed at assisting a return to work at the Kawerau mill should the dispute still not be settled. Essentially the legislation would give all workers on the site the opportunity to decide by secret ballot whether they should as a workforce accept Tasman’s six terms. It would do this by uniting all 12 unions

under a single agreement. The acting leader of the Opposition, Mr Gair, announcing Mr Birch’s initiative, said it could not be described as an imposed solution or an intervention because it would require the workers’ consent. We presented it as an opportunity “to give the majority a chance to have their say,” adding that it was quite unsatisfactory that a handful of workers should be able to frustrate the wishes of a community.