Work on Wharves Held Up

Manawatu Times, Volume 65, Issue 308, 17 December 1940, Page 7

Work on Wharves Held Up

OVERTIME DISPUTE AT AUCKLAND Psr Pres*. Association AUCKLAND, Dec. 16. The loading of produce for shipment in two overseas vessels at Auckland was held up yesterday as a result of a dispute affecting workers in the two export eool stores ou the waterfront. The dispute related to overtime pay for handling butter aud cheese for a Sunday shipment, as a result of which no produce was loaded out of the stores for the week-end loading on to the ships. Besides 140 men directly concerned in the dispute, 270 waterside workers and shipping companies’ staffs were affected. It is announced that the loading schedules of the two ships have now been adjusted. The 46,000 boxes of butter and 4800 crates of cheese to have been loaded yesterday are being loaded on the two ships to-day at normal rates of pay. On Friday, the chamber hands in the cool stores declined to handle produce for Sunday loading unless they were paid the surne rates as the watersidera and guaranteed a minimum of eight hours’ work. They declared their dissatisfaction with the award rates for the handling of produce out of stores for Sunday loading, these rates being double the ordinary rates and amounting to 5s 6d an hour, with 5 per cent, additional as the cost-of-living bonus. Objection was also made to the provision in the award of a guarantee of only two hours’ employment.