Deadlock in metal trades award

Press, 15 September 1988, Page 3

Deadlock in metal trades award

PA Wellington Negotiations on the key metal trades award appeared yesterday to have reached a stalemate. The employers’ advocate, Mr Peter Carroll, said employers would not make any wage offer until the Engineers’ Union accepted the employers’ counter-claim on work conditions. The union secretary, Mr Rex Jones, said employers wanted the union to accept their counter-claim “on the punt that we might get a wage increase.” A sticking point was the matter of paid rate adjustments — in the past increases have been passed on to workers paid an above award rate. Mr Carroll said employers were against such an adjustment this year. The employers’ coun-ter-claim included freeing up of hours, the introduction of part-time shifts and eight hours ordinary time a day before any overtime was paid. Mr Carroll said an offer by printing employers for about 3 per cent would not affect the metal trades award because the printing trades award applied to a limited group of workers. There was a 1.5 per cent difference last year in settlement of the two awards.' ? ;