There were some absentees in the Post Office but other Government departments were virtually unaffected. There were no further absentees at the Public Works Department Waterworks and Electrical and Mechanical depots. Plans made by drivers of the Urban Services Department to barricade themselves in their garages were called off as their intentions were known in advance to senior officers of the depart- ment who had taken steps to forestall them. The utility companies were not affected. It was only in some sections of the Dairy Farm organiza- tion that work was seriously affected. These stoppages involved the Transport Retail Delivery section, the engineering staff responsible for the ice and cold storage plants and workers at the farm itself. The company immediately announced that anyone who did not return to work immediately would be dismissed. The farm workers returned that afternoon but, of the rest, only six engineers remained on duty. The ice and cold storage plants were kept going by staff lent by the Jardines Engineering Corporation. (It has been suggested that the whole staff was confident that confrontation would succeed and the farm workers only resumed work to ensure that the animals in their charge were kept in good condition until the communists took over). On the 11th June the company took the initiative in dismissing a number of men from the catering section who had not stopped work but were known to be com- munist agitators. At this action, all except 40 of the remaining staff in this section stopped work and were also dismissed.
64. Market stall holders and hawkers were urged to stop work on 13th June. There was some response by pork and fish stall holders in some markets but prices remained normal.
65. It was rumoured that there would be further stoppages, by building construction workers and by employees of the Hong Kong & Yaumati Ferry Company; about half the workers at one building site did stop work on the 14th of June but the ferry company was not affected.
66. It was thought that the communists had planned the token stop- pages as a show of strength and that they had taken care not to in- convenience the public, on whom they depended for support. By about the middle of the month, however, there were growing signs that they were about to stage a major stoppage despite the disruption this would cause and the possible adverse reaction of the public. This change in plan may have resulted from the encouraging press reports and wireless broadcasts that emanated from Peking at this stage. On 3rd June the
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