SHORT OF LABOUR

Evening Post, Volume CXXVI, Issue 56, 3 September 1938, Page 11

SHORT OF LABOUR

AUCKLAND WHARVES

MONTEREY DELAYED

CAPTAIN'S CRITICISM

Because of a shortage of union waterfront labour and a delay before more men could be obtained, great difficulty j was experienced in handling the in-; ward cargo of the Monterey, which arrived at Auckland yesterday morning J from San Francisco, reports the '"New i Zealand Herald." The unusual step of putting on two gangs from the ship's crew was finally taken, and, after a postponement in the liner's departure of two hours, she left for Sydney early this morning. One of the heaviest cargoes brought by the Matson Line from the Pacific Coast, totalilng 1500 tons, was carried by dhe Monterey and in an endeavour to assist discharge, an experiment of unloading from a port at No. 2 hatch into barges on the ship's seaward side was tried. In addition to the ordinary work of wharf cranes in the holds portable cranes also lifted cargo on to Prince's Wharf from ports in the liner's side at two holds. Arrangements were made about a week ago for nine gangs of union labour to discharge the Monterey, but ori her arrival it was found that, because of the large amount of shipping in port, only three union gangs would be available for an 8 o'clock start. Four gangs of non-union labour and two ship's gangs were then mustered, but discharge was not moving at full capacity until 10.30. Two barges on the seaward side of the liner were filled with easily-handled cargo by ship labour, to be discharged on to Prince's Wharf this morning. Showers during the day resulted in numerous hold-ups, and in the afternoon, in order to ensure the discharge of about 320 tons of refrigerated fruit cargo, the ship's departure was postponed from 10 p.m. until midnight. The fruit consignment, one of the largest landed by Matson liners for New Zealand, comprised grapes, tomatoes, melons, and grapefruit, a i cargo which could not be over-carried. When work was finished at midnight its' discharge was completed, but some of the general cargo had to be taken on to Sydney, and will return by the Monterey on September 19. "A- MESS UP." "It is appalling that the largest port in. New" Zealand cannot cope with inward cargo," said Captain G. R. Johanson. "You talk, about men being out of work," said Captain Johanson, "yet such a shortage of wharf labour exists that our unloading is needlessly delayed and the whole of our future cargo schedules are upset. In no port I have visited have I experienced such a mess up as this. I am speaking straight from the shoulder only because I feel that if this fine port is penalised through its bad reputation for handling cargo, those in charge will have no one to blame but themselves. "I hope that this incident will serve to bring home the urgent need for reorganising ' the present stevedoring system so that when a rush occurs it will be flexible enough to meet the heaviest demands. There are big ships in this place—they are not small ones any more—and more men should be taken on all the time." UNION REJOINDER. Taking strong exception to Captain Johanson's criticisms, Mr. R. G. Jones, president, and Mr. W. J. Cuthbert, of the Waterside Workers' Union, issued a statement today, states a Press Association message from Auckland. The foundation for the union's argument is that cb-operation seemed to be lacking among the employers. Gangs could have been taken from other less urgent vessels and put on the Monterey. This had- been done in the past, but was not done yesterday. "Our job," Mr. Jones said, "is to see that every man in the union is working. It is not to make arrangements for the employing shipping companies. Yesterday we did everything in our power to get the cargo worked through in time." He added- that there were 1400 men in their union. Only 1320 were available yesterday, sickness^ having reduced the total. When still more labour was required the union and employers tried the Placement Office, and when not another man was available ,they permitted the crew of the Monterey to work on the same terms as the \ waterside workers. Every possible method was used to co-operate with the employers in the distribution of the available labour. Expressing the belief that Captain Johanson's "hysterical outburst" was propaganda, Mr. Jones asked, "Does he think his company's ships, which are heavily subsidised by the United States taxpayers, should have any preference over British ships. They are competing with British ships under unfair conditions. He must not forget that British ships are not allowed to carry passengers between American ports, while American ships are allowed to carry passengers between British ports."