Staff turned away over 'sabotage'

Locked out staff at a Waikato cheese factory are not being allowed to return to work because the company suspects an employee may have sabotaged factory equipment.

The workers from the Open Country Waharoa plant attempted to return to work at 6pm yesterday and 6am today after ending an eight-day strike but were turned away.

However, staff would still be paid for turning up, factory chairman Laurie Margrain told NZPA today.

The workers were barred because the workers had only given management an hour and a half notice before turning up and replacement workers had already been arranged, he said.

There was also "significant" damage done to the factory by someone before the strike was initiated.

"Until we ascertain who caused it, who carried out these acts, we cannot, simply cannot, run the risk of them coming on site and conducting a repeat."

The damage done to the factory included fittings being loosened, valves turned off and pressure gauges altered, Mr Margrain said.

A complaint had been made to police who were investigating.

Mr Margrain said management would decide today who they would be allowing to return to work tonight.

Police were also investigating claims that striking workers threw stones and pebbles at workers coming and going from the factory yesterday.

Dairy Workers Union national secretary James Ritchie said union members would be meeting at the factory at 1pm today to hear what the company had decided to do about staff who turned up for work tonight.

The employees began their strike on Thursday after the company refused to negotiate a collective agreement.

They called the strike off yesterday following an urgent Employment Court hearing, and another set down for Friday.

The hearing was to challenge the legality of whether the company could use other workers to perform the striking employees tasks.

- NZPA