SLOWER HANDLING

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22197, 6 December 1946, Page 6

SLOWER HANDLING

SHIPS IN HARBOUR HEAVY TRADE LOSSES GIFTS TO COMPETITORS “The application of the five-day 40hour week to ports such as Gisborne will mean serious losses to the port authorities and eventually to the men engaged in handling cargo over the wharves.” stated a representative of Gisborne shipping operators yesterday, discussing the decision of the New Zealand Waterside Workers’ Union to extend the main-ports policy to secondary ports. “The effect will be that every ship using the port of Gisborne will spend approximately 50 per cent more time tied up to the wharves, and with a slower turn-round .of .these ships there will develop a congestion of cargoes which in time will pass to the road services,” lie added. “The coastal trade might get back some of this traffic in time, but. some of it will be hard to win again.” Half-Day’s Work at Night The practice in Gisborne in the past had been for ships discharging cargo in the port to work from (i p.m. to 10 p.m., the shipping representative explained; but the elimination of this overtime would mean that the ships in luture would spend 50 per cent more daylight time in the port than previously. The Margaret W.. one of the mainstavs of the port’s connection with Auckland, lias lately maintained a 10dav schedule for the round trip, but it will be impossible to-keep this schedule under the new working conditions. The Poolta, which handies the bulk of coal shipments to' Gisborne from the West Coast, will take at least .two more days to discharge an average cargo here, and of course lose a corresponding amount of time at other ports. In the case of the Poolta, it is probable that whatever day of the week she reaches ■ Gisborne she will have to remain at her berth over the following week-end, which would add considerably to the cost of operating the vessel. Similar restrictions would operate in the case of the South Island produce ship, on her regular calls at Gisborne. Threat of Road Services Waterside workers will lose the benefit of overtime previously earned for njght engagements, but. assuming the volume of cargoes does not fall, their wage losses lor the time being will not be considerable. The port authority probably will be a substantial loser in the matter of cargoe charges however, and this will be accentuated sharply if as is expected. road competitors secure any portion of the cargoes normally handled by sea transport. “The danger behind the present move—for waterside workers in secondary ports—is possibly not fully understood.” the shipping representative added “Cargoes entering or leaving the Dominion at main ports may not fluctuate, but the traffic in the coastal ports Is bound to suffer if congestion delays delivery by sea. Traders may prefer to use road transport for goods tliev require in a hurry, rather than wait for deferred delivery by sea. Such a development will take money out oi the pockets of the watersiders. as well as ol the shipping companies, which at present are experiencing the effects of keen competition from road services.”