EXTENDED HOURS

Wanganui Chronicle, Volume 86, Issue 67, 20 March 1942, Page 3

EXTENDED HOURS

NECESSARY IN TIMBER J INDUSTRY ; (Press Assn.) Wellington, March 19. i The working of a 54-hour week in 1 the defence construction industry, as I recently announced, will be followed : by the working of extended hours in r the timber industry in the North ( Island, said the Commissioner of 1 State Forests, the Hon. J. G. Barclay, : last night. 1 As recently as last December, said - the Minister, representatives of both 1 the employers and the employees re-; ported some extension of hours was ’ necessary and, had it not been for ad- < verse circumstances in connection I with petrol restrictions, vehicle im- ' pressmen!., etc., extended hours would ' already have been adopted. It was essential now. however, even 1 in the face of the other difficulties, 1 that production should be materially increased. It had been decided, added 1 the Minister, that all mills tributary to the main rail system of the North 1 Island must be operated for not less . than 48 hours, unless it could be shown to the Government's satisfaction that this was impossible, either by logging difficulties or other physical factors outside an employer’s control. An appeal had been made to both employers and employees to work the logging section of the industry and the repair personnel of sawmills as long hours as possible, consistent with efficiency, so that the maximum number of mills may work up to the , 48-hour Jimit. Extra costs imposed upon the industry would be met by a i subsidy, Mr. Barclay added. i The necessary regulations were being prepared to give effect to the Government’s’ decision but, in the meantime, he appealed to all coni cerned to make every endeavour to ; make the working of longer hours i possible. A subsidy to cover the.increased production costs was already operating and the extra petrol essential to the expansion of production would be forthcoming.