Kinleith mill workers renew boycott

By MATHEW DEARNALEY

Kinleith pulp and paper mill workers have renewed a vote to boycott an outside contractor's employment overtures, despite letters to their homes urging them to think of their families.

The workers are upset at receiving more letters on Thursday from mill owner Carter Holt Harvey, which repeated an appeal for them to apply for jobs with engineering contractor ABB by the end of last week.

The Employment Court is hearing a challenge by the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union over plans to lay off 381 of the mill's 770 employees while contracting out maintenance and stores activities.

One worker said the letters served only to fuel a strong vote on Friday for keeping an "integrated" mill workforce against the deadline to register interest in working for ABB.

"We don't want lectures on looking after our families when they are trying to destroy us," he said.

Mill spokeswoman Robyn Orchard denied that her company was putting undue pressure on workers, saying the latest letters were simply an attempt by maintenance manager Ian Whyte to ensure his staff were able to make informed decisions before the deadline.

Mr White wrote that workers had to submit application forms with ABB by Friday if they wished to keep working at Kinleith.

"It is very important to you and your family that you consider your options carefully - it is your future," he wrote.

Letters the week before, from mill manager David King, warned that ABB had reported substantial interest from job advertisements in Australian and New Zealand media.

However, Mr Whyte told the court that his company hoped ABB would hire as many Kinleith workers as possible, to retain a high level of "institutional knowledge".

Ms Orchard could not say how many Kinleith workers had applied for up to 150 jobs on offer at ABB if it wins a maintenance contract next month, although mill workplace relations manager Paul Mackay told the court on Wednesday that the figure was higher than 16.

Union advocate Mike Sweeney derided this yesterday as insignificant compared with an existing maintenance workforce of more than 250, and said it showed the mill company was "flogging a dead horse".

But ABB asset management vice-president Bruce Campbell said last night that the figure had risen above 50, and his company would assess these and applications from farther afield before deciding whether to re-advertise.

The alternative to slashing costs against fierce competition could be total closure, Mr King warned.

Despite the boycott of ABB, Mr Sweeney said the union was preparing to return to negotiations tomorrow and Thursday with Carter Holt Harvey, before the court hearing resumes next week.