DISMISSAL ORDER IGNORED BY WATERSIDERS

Gisborne Herald, Volume LXXV, Issue 22697, 23 July 1948, Page 6

DISMISSAL ORDER IGNORED BY WATERSIDERS

(P.A.) • CHRISTCHURCH. July 22. A Gilbertian situation developed at Lyttelton this morning when in spite of the obstacles put in their way. waterside workers continued to load frozen meat for Britain aboard the liner Waiwera. The Harbour Board’s electric crane drivers were told not to work the ship when they reported for duty at 8 o’clock, but aft»r consultation with the union they continued to operate. Cranes Moved From Ship"

At noon, however, the drivers were ordered to stop work and the cranes ■were moved away from the ship. When watersiders arrived to man the Waiwera they found access hatches to-the holds locked, power off for the hold lights and no power to work the ship’s electric winches. By lunch time railwaymen at Lyttelton had become involved. Shunters at the port, aware that power had been cut off to the wharf cranes, decided that they would not be parties to any move to return frozen meat trucks to the works. The executive of the Lyttelton Harbour Board Employees’ Union met and recommended the Minister of Labour, Mr. A- McLagan, to call a meeting of the parties involved on Tuesday. Raids by Officials Shipping company officials, it is stated, made one of their periodical raids for, “spelling" and found that 44 men who should have come back to work had failed to do so. The men were dismissed. A similar raid was made yesterday afternoon and another 20 men were dismissed. The union was asked to make a replacement of the 64 men and refused to do so. The (34 dismissed men turned up with the remainder, a total-of 174 men. to work the Waiwera this morning. „ Where normally the watersiders might have stopped work they have had something at stake in the Waiwera. Since she has been in port the watersiders- have made no secret of the fact that' they wanted to load he in record time as a gesture in the aid-to-Bntam campaign. . Fast jtate of Loading A good rate of loading of frozen mutton is between 700 and 800 carcases an hour and up till Tuesday the vessel was - being loaded at more than 1000 carcases an hour. The loading was actually two or three days ahead of schedule. ' .' The' men gained a complete victory when they returned after the. lunch break. The Harbour Board cranes, which had been shifted,, were, moved back to the ship’s side. Power was turned on to the winches and hold lights and work continued under normal conditions. When it appeared likely that the railwaymen would be asked to stop shunting wagons for the Waiwera a meeting of the Lyttelton branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants was called and the following resolution was passed “It is the opinion of this branch that work should continue on the Waiwera pending a settlement of the dispute We will refuse to carry out any duties which' will prevent the loading of the The branch decided that it would review the position at a further meeting on Friday. . . .