ON STRIKE

Dominion, Volume 5, Issue 1361, 12 February 1912, Page 8

ON STRIKE

FREEZING WORKS' DISPUTE. BOTH SIDES FIRM. - 'WORKS CAN BE CLOSED INDEFINITELY. Employees at tho local meat export slaughterhouses are still on strike, and there are no visible indurations of mi approaching settlement. The Gear Company and the Wellington Meat Export Company have had their works cleared up. and are prepared to stand a siege. Tho men on strike are projecting a picnic at Day's Bay on Tuesday next. Apparently it is to bo a question of determining which sido will tiro first. A statement which has been published, (o tho effect that, the Gear Company, having unit back live stock to the country, will be' able to keep its works closed for a full fortneght without any serious hurt, conveys only .1 part of flip truth. It is stated, on reliable authority, that the company can keep its works closed indefinitely without any serious inconvenience. This appears to represent the attitude of both the companies concerned. The men on strike, on the other hand, sj'em equally determined to hold,out for concessions. .So tar as can be ascertained tlit-re is no present intention of extending the strike. It is strictly confined at present to the two companies and their employees, and the chances are that, the dispute will bo fought to a finish without outside assistance bef.ng called in. The slaughtermen in the employ of tho companies stand practically in a neutral position. They are notion strike, but in. the absence of their assistants they cannot work., . . ' ' . The idea that the strike is unlikely to extend gains colour from the fact that the slaughtermen's organisation,- which stands nearest in point of natural relation to the newly-formed union which is now at issue with,the. employers, has habitually pursued a self-reliant policy. It is-a-'inct that important disputes affectin? portions of the meat export industry have at times been settled, not always easily, without tho general public so much as knowing that, they had occurred. ALL QUIET. PETONE QUITE NORMAL. Inquiries were.niado at;l'etono on Saturday inigh.t'es" to', whether the strike had had any' effect •on the town. Tho report was;that, everything had been quite normal. There was no rowdyism, and'.no more drinking,than was the case on any ordinary Saturday -night. One of the Wellington! Socialists delivered'an address in the Main Strct, whioh was listened to by about 50 men. The audience consisted mostly' of ~man from the .Government railway.',workshops., There wore very few strikers present, and ' the reception ac- , corded tho speaker' was not- of an enthusiastic .character. Soino of the shopkeepers stated, in reply to inquiries, that receipts' were below the average for Saturday. They assumed that those on strike were hushanding their resources in case of eventualities. GEAR CO'S WORKS SILENT. EFFORT TO INFLUENCE THE FIREMEN. But for the engines and machinery in connection with tho freezing chambers the Gear Co.'s works at .Petone are silent. The chambers aro full at present, and it is possible that any local supplies contracted for by the company could be supplied for some timo out of the freshly-frozon stock. It is understood that an effort has been made to influence tho firemen and greasers (who are not; attached to' any union) to go out, but; so far they have refused to do so. If the blandishments of the strike leaders •were successful in persnadinp; these men tojgo out, the'position might be serious as"volnnteer firemen might be regarded as "scabs," and their employment would V ... be inimical to the peace of Petone. ' ■"- -. There are said to be some general labourers on tho permanent staff of the Gear Company-who do all classes of work about the works and aro employed with the strikers during the killing season. 'These men have not gone out with the others. It is believed that they are being regarded as "scabs" by the strikers and that they will endeavour to ■make their dismissal a condition in any agreement to return to work. The last, flock of sheep which had arrived at the Gear Co.'s yards for slaughter before tho strike developed were entrained back to the countrv on Saturday. Ono thousand sheep designed for slaughter have.been turned out on \ the grass at Taita. AT NGAHAURANGA. BILLING FOR LOCAL CONSUMPTION. The slaughtermen who have had to stop ■work at tho meat works owing to the strike among the unskilled workers have no desire to see the city harassed, in regard to its local supply of fresh meat and-to prove this turned to at the Wellington Meat Export Company's works on Saturday morning- to kill for local con-sumption-which means about 250 sheep per day. They are, however, all out against tho employment of "scab" labour and arc said'to-be determined to "down tools" if any of this form of labour is employed even in connection with the slaughtering and preparing for the. market of meat. for. local consumption. They do hot reganl clerks and other officers M tho company as "scabs," so the' work went steadily on on Saturday until enough sheep and cattle had been killed for the Wellington supply. On acconnt of the cessation of all ■work in connection with the export trade several engineers' fitters 'and carpenters (not'on tho' permanent, staff) were, informed at noon on Saturday that their services would not be required for ■ the present. . . It _is. understood that there was a meeting of the Meat Export Co.'s permanent staff on Saturday. * Tho members of",~^~i'jW!"?tnff are not members of any union, but'it is believed that there is a possibility of them going on strike in sympathy with those already out. "FREEZERS" WANT MORE MONEY. AN ANOMALY. "Freezers" are those men''employed in /stowing' or sending out meat from the freezing chambers. These men aro at present- "out." with the strikers, and have what they consider a legitimate wage grievance. They have been getting Is. (id. per hour for working in the chamlisrs at a temperature below zero, whereas the waterside workers in Wellington who handle the meat in transit from the insulated trucks to the ship's hold are now getting 2s. an bom- for ordinary working hours. The "freezers" at the meat .works consider their conditions jrnich harder than those of the waterside .workers, and are demanding 2s. per hour.

CITY MEAT SUPPLY. NO GREAT DIFFICULTY ANTICIPATED. "LUCKY TO HAVE MUNICIPAL ABATTOIRS." There-is a section of Wellington's public considerably agitated on the question as to whether the local supply of fresh meat will be interfered with by the practical utoppoge of work at the Gear and Wellington Meat Export Company's works. Some mention was made of the point in Saturday's issue, when the opinions ot two city butchers were given. One scouted the idea of any interference with the local supply and the other thought there was ft grave probability of trouble. Further inquiry was made on Saturday, the evidence collected being of an entirely Teassuring nature. "There an some butchers in Wellington who buy their meat rteail from the Heat Export C 0.," said one butcher, "who may have to make other Arrangements for' their supplies if the hands at the ■works refuse to turn to, but there are ot.he.rs—and I am ono of thorn—who buy on the hoof and have their own purchases slaughtered at the Municipal Abattoirs at Ngahanranga. The butohoring work j« done for us under contract by the Liddlo Brothers, four exp?.r( slaughtermen who contract to do all Hie xork at the abattoirs. They are capital men

at their trade and get through a. lot of work. Even if the floor-hands ajid others at the abattoirs were,. foolish enough to go out in sympathy with the men now on strike, ■ arrangements could easily be made fo do tho work for. tho city at the abattoirs. It might mean that the. contractors would want assistance from town, but if that became necessary thcro are a dozen or two good butchers, who would be only too glad to lend them a hand in order that they could "keep faith with their customers. Yes—and some of us would do other work than the slaughtering before we would be stuck. . 'Trouble might come if any slaughtering was done at tiie abattoirs for either of the moat companies involved, but, I don't, think that, is likely to occur. Each of the companies line 0110 big shop to supply, but I don't fancy they will find much difficulty in slaughtering that much in their works." Another authority consulted stated that it was very lucky the city had been prudent enough to provide abattoirs. Had there not been suitable slaughtering accommodation outside the meat companies' works there might easily have Ixhmi trouble in supplying the demand during such a crisis. Now, if the worst came to the worst, the contractors, assisted by town butchers,,, co "l'l slaughter night and day at the municipal abattoirs, while an arrangement could easily bo made to get rid of the offal. DIRECT LOSS TO FARMERS. VIEWS IN THE WAIBAEAPA. (By Telegraph—Special Correspondent.) Masterton, February 11. Tho meat works strike at Petone and Nguhauranga was almost the sole topic of conversation among the farmors in town yesterday. Unlike the tramway strike, which, though creating inconvenience, touches only the pockets of the community as a whole, the present strike means direct loss to scores of settlers. Fortunately the drought which had overtaken this district has broken on the very day that the strike occurred, and tho pastures and root crops have been stimulated, so that stock which is ready for the freezing works will not go back for a week or two at least. Some thousands of sheep which were on the road to tho railways are being depastured in holding paddocks, and buyers have ceased operations. Meanwhile tho Waingawa works are going at high pressure, and it is reported that some of the stock will be railed to Hawke's Bay. Farmers are indignant at the demands made by the men, and not a .few have been heard to suggest retaliatory measures. TO WHILE THE TIME AV/AY. Tho slaughtermen of the Gent Meat Company who have been forced out of work by the strike arc to play a cricket match to-day, "just to while the time away!" The men on strike and- their wives and families are to hold 1 a big picnic at Day's Bay on Tuesday. It is possible that during tho course of the day the strike leaders will deliver addresses." Several of the grocers and business people of Petone were approached on Saturday for contributions in kind, and readily acceded to the request. OUTSIDE SYMPATHY. The strikers say that they have received messages from all parts of New Zealand and Australia asking for particulars of the position, and inquiring whether they are short of funds.