SHOP ASSISTANTS’ AWARD

Nelson Evening Mail, Volume LXXIII, 5 July 1939, Page 4

SHOP ASSISTANTS’ AWARD

POSSIBLE EFFECT ON FRUITGROWERS I RESOLUTION BY OTAGO CONFERENCE I United Fret.* Am*«»rial ion I j DUNEDIN. 4th July. 1 The possible effect of the proposed Dominion shop assistants’ award on fruitgrowers was discussed at the an- . nual Otago provincial conference of j the New Zealand Fruitgrowers’ Federation in Roxburgh on Monday, when ( a letter was read from the secretary !of the Otago Retail Fruiterers’ Association, who. on behalf of that organ- • isation. requested the conference to coj operate in a protest against the terms iof the award, specially the clauses 'dealing with hours of work. ! After a brief discussion, it was decided that the following resolution should be submitted to the annual conference of the New Zealand federation:— “Its attention having been drawn to the proposed Dominion shop assistants’] award, which, if put into effect, would j greatly curtail the hours in which I fruit can be sold by retailers, this conference would urgently protest against such curtailment. It is estimated that curtailment of hours as suggested by the proposed award would reduce sales very considerably. The lot of the fruitgrowers is already sufficiently precarious. and such action would greatly accentuate the position. Further, the closing hours, by reducing the working time, would jeopardise the position of assistants employed in fruit shops.”