By PHILIPPA STEVENSON agricultural editor
The Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry will decide today whether to appeal against a court decision that cleared meatworks veterinarians to strike from Friday.
Yesterday, Employment Court Chief Judge Tom Goddard rejected MAF's legal moves to stop planned strikes by its 120 staff vets who certify the processing of export meat.
Meat companies and farmers have lambasted the vets for threatening to halt the $1.4 billion European Easter lamb trade. MAF said it took the case to ensure that the vets were not sued if their actions were found to be illegal.
Judge Goddard said some of the objections the ministry raised were not well made.
He rejected MAF's claim that the vets' union, the National Union of Public Employees (Nupe), was not properly registered.
His ruling also means that another 19 unions registered before the Employment Relations Act came into effect will be regarded as properly registered.
Nupe secretary Ivan Finlayson said the vets would strike for a week from Friday, with further notices to be issued, taking the full-day stoppages to March 6.
He doubted that MAF would appeal against the ruling because Judge Goddard had commented to the effect that the case was trivial.
Stalled mediation was due to restart next Tuesday, "but the strike will be under way by then," said Mr Finlayson.
MAF operations group manager Grant Burney said the case had not been taken on technicalities to delay the strike. "If it wasn't a legal strike then members of our staff would be liable for what are substantial economic losses," he said.
"At the injunction hearing, Judge Goddard said he found our arguments logically compelling and he went to 42 pages of judgment to say what he thought of the issue.
"I don't think it was ever just a technicality.
"This is a really serious issue. This is the time of the year that they [farmers] take advantage, at last, of the dollar revaluation and of the only market that is worth a damn in terms of premium on lamb."
MAF was taking advice from the Crown Law Office on an appeal and needed to make a decision by this morning to help companies to plan.
Mr Burney hoped talks would resume with the union this afternoon.
Meat Industry Association executive director Brian Lynch said the last sea shipment of lamb for the European Easter trade would leave New Zealand on February 22.
A strike next week would occur during one of the most hectic times of the year for companies processing stock to meet the shipping deadline.
A strike until March 6 would harm the equally valuable post-Easter trade.
Mr Lynch said the industry would urge MAF to look at some of the vets' "more deep-seated grievances," including the impacts of ministry restructuring and drastic changes to their jobs.
Affco livestock general manager Athol Murray said all four of its sheep plants were running to capacity, "and we'd like it to continue."
MAF ponders appeal over yes to strike
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