SHIP DELAYED

New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXIII, Issue 22583, 23 November 1936, Page 8

SHIP DELAYED

DISCHAEGING OF COAL DEMAND BY WATERSIDER& EXTRA PENNY AN HOUR [BY TELEGRAPH —OWN CORIIKSPOXDESI]' GISBORXE. Sunday Consequent upon a dispute regarding the rates to be paid men working 0Q tlie wharf, no work was clone yesterday in the discharge of tlie cargo of coal brought from .Newcastle by tlie Union Steam Ship Company's -steamer Kai. niiro. l.'nder a recent agreement it was provided that trimmers and winchmen handling coal should be paid Id an hour above the rates for other waterside workers, and the point at issue wag whether this concession should extend to all workers, the men on the wharf refusing work yesterday morning unlesi the additional payment was offered. The question was discussed at length at a stop-work meeting, the result of which was not announced, although it is understood that the men have inti. mated that work will be resumed to. morrow morning. The Kaimiro arrived on Friday and the handling of general cargo proceeded as usual, but when the roal was reached the hold-up occurred. The ship had teen scheduled to sail for AVestport to-nior-row, but as a result of the delay sha will not now get away before Tuesday, OBSTRUCTIVE TACTICS COMPLAINTS AT WAIKOKOPU

MINISTER TO INVESTIGATE

[BY TELEGRAPH —OWN CORRESPOXDKST] GISBORXE, Snnd.iy

"We are not going to have purely obstructive tactics," declared the Minister of Public Works, the Hon. ft. Semple, replying to a deputation from the Wairoa Harbour Board yesterday regarding the attitude of the waterside workers at Waikokopu. The deputation raised strong objection to the tactic* adopted there.

Referring to the experience of ship, ping companies regarding what ichey termed the captious attitude toward working conditions in the port, tha board's chairman, Mr. J. Corkill, said that when overseas vessels were loadinjin the roadstead the waterside workera made the excuse of a comparatively mild jobble to require the shipping companies to carry them on to the next port at full pay and the expense of returning them overland to their homes. Such action, he said, had been taken on occasions when shipping officials had come ashore at Waikokopu without trouble.

Mr. H. L. Harker said it was a standing joke that the waterside workera took their bags with them aboard overseas vessels in anticipation of being carried on to the next port. The deputation asked that the obstructive tatv tics of the union should be curbed.

The Minister said he would refer the S; matter to the Minister of Labour, the I Hon. H. T. .Armstrong, and to Mr. J. I Roberts at the union headquarters, fe with the idea of ensuring that no in- § creasing handicap should be placed on export industries. TROUBLE AT OPOTIKI WAIOTAHI HELD UP DISPUTE OVER LOADING! fSY TELEGRAPH —OWN CORRESPONDENT] OPOTIKI, Sunday J rouble occurred this week over tha loading of the Northern Steamship Company's vessel Waiotahi, which ar- I rived here on Wednesday and did not leave for Auckland again until nearly | mid-day yesterday. Mr. W. T. Burrett, the Opotiki agent, said that immediately on arrival the vessel commenced to discharge, but work ceased about 5 p.m. owing to rain. | Under normal conditions work would have continued until the vessel com- | pleted loading, possibly in five hours j more, on Wednesday evening. Work g commenced again on Thursday morn'uuJ p and continued until noon. Owing to the | 40-hour week operating on the Ar.ck- f land waterfront, and partially so in the | freezers, it is not possible to discharge £ all butter arriving in Auckland o:u Sat- | urday morning. It was necessary to delay the loading | of the butter until 1 p.m. on I'ridav, | and the local watersiders were ordered | down to work at that time. The tvatcr- | siders said they would be unable to start | at that time, but could start at <5 P- m * | This would have compelled the company | to pay five or six hours' overtime. Ihere | was no objection raised by the unionists | to the agent obtaining non-union labour | ! and after delay a gang of non-unionists j- ! was secured and work proceeded. ; j In reply to Mr. Burrett's statement | i the unionists say they were prepared to | j continue loading on Thursday afternoon. | I At a meeting on Thursday night tiro « | men wore unanimous in refusing to | I work the boat on Friday, as tk<\V | j concrete work to do at the wharf. Tlifl | union secretary notified the shippmS | agent that they were prepared to becia | work at 6 p.m. or that non-union labour | could be engaged, and the secretary 1 assisted in finding men. The vessel com- r pleted loading this morning, N't | unionists. fe "The union would like to know, *a | the secretary, "why the men were f' j fused work on Thursday afternoon when | the boat could have sailed on Friday ° i arrive in Auckland on Saturday morn; | ing. These late sailings of the Waiota g save the Northern Company from P» r * | ing overtime in Auckland, but t | butter which was loaded here will ' lO | be discharged until Monday." | The men contend that there was no | necessity to delay the ship and • | take no responsibility for tlic • | arrival in Auckland.