EFFICIENCY LOST BY WORKERS

Southland Times, Issue 23824, 23 May 1939, Page 6

EFFICIENCY LOST BY WORKERS

Allegation Made By Mr S. G. Holland

GO-SLOW POLICY ON WATERFRONT

“Today, New Zealand is drifting down the hill in its efficiency,” said Mr S. G. Holland, M.P. for Christchurch North, in an address at a National Party rally in Invercargill last night. “This is most prominent on our wharves, but I am happy to state that in all parts of New Zealand I hear that the efficiency in this part of the country is higher than in some other centres,” he said. “There are three speeds on the Wellington wharves today. They are: Go slow,’ ‘go very slow,’ and ‘stop. The last was very much in evidence the other day when the Dominion Monarch arrived on a day wliicH did riot suit tne watersiders and so two Ministers engaged the Tivoli Theatre down near the Houses of Parliament to address the watersiders and plead with them to go back to work,” Mr Holland said. Many ships arrived in New Zealand from Britain after having called at Australian ports. The equipment was exactly the same in both countries, but whereas the gangs of watersiders could handle 23 tons of cargo in an hour in Australia they could handle only 11 tons an hour in New Zealand. It was the producer who had to pay the extra cost caused by the go-slow policy. Formerly gangs of watersiders at New Zealand ports had been able to handle 850 boxes of butter in an hour, but the rate had now dropped to 550 boxes an hour. The handling rate for freight carcasses had dropped from 4600 a day to 3500. In 1933 it was possible for the watersiders to handle 80 bales of wool an hour, but today the rate was from 50 to 65 bales.

“Wages have gone up by 30 per cent, but the costs of handling produce on the wharves has gone up by 60 per cent., because of the loss of efficiency of the men,” declared Mr Holland.