STOPPAGE BY BUTCHERS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 25800, 22 March 1945, Page 4

STOPPAGE BY BUTCHERS

THE MAKAREWA WORKS AN ERRONEOUS REPORT (P.A.) INVERCARGILL, Mar. 21. No killing was done at the Makarewa Freezing Works to-day. It is understood that the reason for the stoppage was an® Auckland report, which, the slaughtermen contended, meant that the agreement reached in January on the retrospective payment of the wage increases was not now operative. A resolution was carried that telegrams be sent to officials of the Freezing Workers’ Federation asking for confirmation about the retrospective agreement made in January between representatives of the Government and the federation officials and that no work be done until replies had been received.

Mr D. Cody, president of the Freezing Workers’ Federation, who is at present in Wellington, assured the Southland Times to-night that the retrospective agreement was still in force. He added that the fact that the Arbitration Court had made a pronouncement did not affect the agreement, which provided for the retrospective payment of 'any wage in-> creases from January 1. With this assurance it is believed that work will be resumed at Makarewa in the morning. The Makarewa employees were the only slaughtermen in the province who stopped killing. The general manager of the Southland Frozen Meat Company, Mr A. Derbie, said to-day that he had been Informed that the workers had no grudge against the company. About 5000 sheep and lambs should have been killed to-day