ARMY HELP REFUSED

Te Awamutu Courier, Volume 59, Issue 4219, 4 December 1939, Page 4

ARMY HELP REFUSED

DISPUTE AT WAIOURU CAMP. DELAY MAY AFFECT TRAINING. A peculiar situation seems to have developed at the Waiouru Camp, for according to reports from Taihape, the refusal of Public Works Department employees to work alongside Army engineers sent to the camp to help them, together with trouble experienced in obtaining delivery of materials, is stated to have been responsible for the delay which has occurred in opening Waiouru for members of the special force. As a result it is possible that much of the Army’s advanced training programme will be very seriously affected. Public Works officials at the camp were asked on Saturday if the workmen had refused to work alongside the soldiers. It was stated that nothing serious had occurred, that the matter was quickly settled and that no delay had been caused in construction as a result. The earlier story indicated that it was originally expected that the camp would be ready for the first three units—the 19th (Wellington) Battalion, the New Zealand Engineers and the Divisional Cavalry—at least a week ago. The main buildings to be constructed have been cookhouses, messrooms and like structures, all in permanent materials, sleeping accommodation being tents, but progress was not nearly as rapid in the final stages as was desirable. PARTY OF SOLDIERS SENT. At times more men could have been used for the work and on November 20 a party of 20 of the New Zealand Engineers, under the charge of a non-eommissioned officer, was sent from Ngaruawahia to help the workmen and speed up preparations for the reception of the main body of soldiers. An officer arrived a few days later, after, it is stated, the workmen had displayed ill-feeling about the proposal. ACTION BY WORKMEN. It is stated that the workmen heard what was proposed and, possibly considering that they would lose wages if the job was shortened, flatly refused the assistance of the soldiers. They threatened to cease work altogether if the soldiers were used. As a result of departmental intervention the incident was prevented from developing further. However, the engineers were not used to forward the construction of the camp. Instead, they spent most of their time shifting floorboards. The camp was not made ready for occupation by the soldiers until this week-end. TRAINING AND CHRISTMAS LEAVE. For the Army the serious aspect of the delay which has occurred is that the training programme of other units who are to follow th,e first group into camp has had to be completely re-arranged. One result may be that the Christmas leave of some of the troops will be reduced in order to give them the opportunity of receiving mass instruction at Waiouru. Some may even have to be sent overseas without being given all of that portion *of their New Zealand training which most closely resembles actual war conditions.