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New Zealand Herald, Volume LXXVIII, Issue 23861, 11 January 1941, Page 8

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SOUTHDOWN WORKS COOL STORES DISPUTE ATTEMPT TO REOPEN CASE WESTFIELD STANDS FIRM Attempts by employees of the Southdown freezing works to have the Westfield workers rescind their decision by ballot not to take any action in support of the chamber-hands dismissed at the city cool stores last. week, resulted in a great deal of activity in official union circles at both works throughout yesterday and at the Southdown works two mass meetings held up work for over two hours. At Westfield there was no interruption of work, but a number of conferences by the union delegates were held. 1 At the second mass meeting at Southdown. a resolution was passed calling upon the union executive to convene a special mass meeting of all members of the Auckland Freezing Workers' and Belated Trades Union employed at the Westfield, Southdown and Horotiu freezing works and the city cool stores. The purpose of the proposed meeting would be to consider action in support of the 140 chamberhands who were dismissed for refusing to handle produce on Sundays. Rejection of Proposal At the same meeting the men passed a resolution offering to work this afternoun and on subsequent Saturday afternoons to overtake the arrears of work on condition that the dismissed cool store workers were reinstated. The resolution, was submitted to the works' management for transmission to the Auckland Farmers' Freezing Company, Limited, which controls the city cool stores and the Southdown and Horotiu freozing works. The general manager of the company, Mr. A. G. Brown, stated that evening that the resolution had been received, but it could not be entertained.

At the first meeting of the Southdown workers, which lasted from 8 a.m. to 9.30, dissatisfaction with the union executive's handling of the dispute was exprtsse# and a resolution was adopted appoiittfng five members of the rank and file to proceed to the Westfield works and endeavour to induce the workers there to review their decision of no action. The men resumed work on the understanding that the special delegation would report developments at a later meeting. No Change at Westfield The Southdown delegation was refused admission to the Westfield works by the management and it waited outside the gates while the Westfield delegates met to consider its request. The latter's decision was to the effect that as the workers had decided by ballot to take no action the decision must stand. This information was conveyed to the second mass meeting at Southdown held at 12.30 p.m. After a discussion lasting almost an hour and in which it was urged that a mass meeting of all union members be held in Auckland to consider the whole position afresh, the men resumed work shortly after 1.30 p.m.

When the tenor of the Southdown resolution was conveyed to the secretary of the union, .Mr. W. E. Sill, he said the calling of special meetings was provided for in the union rules and I action could only be taken in con- | formity with them. I Good Work at Cool Stores Tentative suggestions were made at the Westfield works that the slaughtering departments should work this afternoon to make up the time lost through the stoppages, but no arrangements were reached. The stopwork meetings at this works this week have resulted in over five hours' slaughtering time being lost, this being equivalent to the handling of about 7000 lambs, and about 750 pigs. At Southdown the stoppages have resulted in about ;iOOO lambs and 800 pigs being carried over. The new men employed in the cool stores oil the waterfront will work today and to-morrow. They have been fully occupied since they were engaged last week, as, in addition to bringing large quantities of produce into the stores, they have put out sufficient butter and cheese for the loading of several ships. They had had a fairly severe introduction to the work, said the general manager of the company, but were working well.