Miners back at work after strikes cause coal shortage

Coal miners are today back on the job and likely to be working overtime to catch up after a breakthrough in their lengthy industrial dispute with Solid Energy last night.


Several North Island hospitals have been having to cope with coal shortages as an impasse in pay talks between Solid Energy and miners at Huntly East, Rotowaro and Stockton mines meant some miners had been off the job since July 1.


The company's contingency stockpile of coal was exhausted yesterday and hospitals were having to turn the heating off in non-patient areas to cope.


But after 28 hours of talks over the weekend, at 7.30pm last night miners agreed to return to work.


Details are still to be thrashed out but all the miners will get a 5 per cent pay rise this year and a 2 per cent cash payment next year.


Miners at Huntly East, Rotowaro, Stockton and Spring Creek mines will also get a 3 per cent pay rise next year, while those at Terrace and Ohai mines will get a 2 per cent rise next year -- taking into account the fact their current collective agreements expire three months after those at other mines.


Engineering Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) national secretary Andrew Little this morning told NZPA m ore talks would be held later this week and the agreement was expected to be sign in the next two to three weeks. "We're not anticipating any major problems."


Mr Little expected there would be some overtime for miners returning to catch back up. "It takes things a wee while to get back up to full production."


As part of the agreement, a "working party" would be set up to look at how to manage the "exit" of miners no longer able to work. "Mainly for age reasons -- there's a reasonably high average age amongst that workforce.


"There are the guys, mainly in their 50s, who are just not as physically capable as when they started at the mine 20 or 30 years ago.


"We need to have a dignified of dealing with that."


Some might work in other areas of the company, others might leave altogether.


- NZPA