Transcript below
Red Alert
Archive for the ‘jobs’ Category
Money talks
Posted by Darien Fenton on April 27th, 2012Today we learn that the government caved into another demand from Sir Peter Jackson and Warner Bros which involved bending immigration rules in their favour.
In 2010, Peter Jackson told Government Ministers that Warners were worried about our employment law, because the distinction between “contractors” and “employees” established five years earlier in the Bryson case required employers to treat him as an employee.
Bryson was not an actor, yet we changed the law because Warners said so and in doing so, removed rights for a whole category of workers.
Turns out, it was just one of their demands.
Official Information finally released, shows that the government was only too happy to fall into line with other concerns, such as the alleged visa “blockages” for overseas performers.
And hey presto : changes have been made. And they don’t only apply to actors – they apply to everyone working in the industry.
I seem to recall John Key saying this was about New Zealand jobs.
But secret deals in immigration processes like this completely undermine our immigration systems and are unfair to Kiwi workers.
The integrity of our immigration system stands or falls on transparency, but this latest revelation adds to a trend of giving privileges to the better off and a willingness to bend the rules when money is involved.
Update: You can view the OIA request here.
Sticking up for your city
Posted by Clare Curran on April 22nd, 2012It’s one of the main jobs of any member of parliament to stick up for your patch. You are elected by a constituency and they want and expect you to defend them and promote their rights. I don’t think constituents expect to get a better deal than anyone else in the grand scheme of things, but they don’t want to be treated with contempt and disrespect.
I don’t think it’s any surprise to anyone that I’ve come out fighting over the extraordinary, but probably predictable decision by Kiwirail to put the Hillside workshops up for sale. In Saturday’s Otago Daily Times I was quite forthright in expressing my views. I used some rather unladylike language and had to ring my mum the day before to warn her.
I stand by what I said. I think the government (and Kiwirail) have pissed on Dunedin. I think many Dunedin-ites agree. Saturday’s ODT editorial seems to agree too though in more polite terms.
I think that the only way we’re going to sort things is for Dunedin people to take control ourselves. And to have a future Labour government backing rail.
I’ll do my best to help find a buyer for Hillside. I’ll continue to take the fight to parliament and I’ll remain a thorn in the side of this government and the local National List MP Michael Woodhouse who has seriously let down the people of Dunedin in the pursuit of his own career. I’ll advocate for the need for and the importance of this industry to remain in public hands, and indeed to just bloody remain in our country.
When I took this job on I understood that there are times when sticking up for your city is more important than towing toeing a party line that you don’t agree with and which is going to hurt your city. It’s a judgement to be rarely exercised. Sometimes the greater good is more important than a local issue. But every MP should have the right and the responsibility to stand up for their city. This was one of those times. Woodhouse didn’t even think about it.
He blocked a select committee hearing on the petition signed last year by nearly 14,000 people (mostly from Dunedin) calling on the government to save the Hillside and Woburn (Hutt) workshops. He has never been held accountable for refusing to allow the people of Dunedin, the Hillside workers and their union to have a say before a parliamentary committee. He should be.
His government is negligent, disingenuous and downright liars about their responsibilities for Kiwirail and its decision and their knowledge of those decisions. As my colleague David Parker has said; if the KiwiRail board had made the same announcement without telling a Labour government, the board would have been sacked. It is just nonsense and untrue for shareholding Ministers to say they didn’t know Kiwirail’s direction and decisions. And it is very clear that they don’t oppose Kiwirail’s decision to sell Hillside.
There’s more at stake than the nearly 130 jobs, the loss of wages, taxes, skills and the more than 137 year history of a competent and valued rail manufacturing plant to the city of Dunedin. There are more than 70 engineering businesses clustered around Hillside. It’s the backbone of our city. It’s becoming more high tech. It’s a hugely important part of our local and regional economy.
This government doesn’t give a stuff. They allowed (and encouraged) it to be run down and now it’s being sold because Kiwirail says it’s not viable. Kiwirail deliberately made it unviable.
I ask you this. How is that that contracts have been handed to the Chinese to build rail wagons that are dubious in quality, when those same wagons could have been built here? They may have cost a bit more, but the workmanship would have been assured, the maintenance would have been less and have been more easily accomplished, and the people who built the wagons would have been earning decent wages and paying taxes in the New Zealand economy.
Kiwirail, and the government, has blocked any independent scrutiny of the dodgy process in awarding those contracts to China North Rail and the quality issues associated with the Chinese wagons. It’s time for some sunlight on both.
It is not false economy to manufacture in your own country. It’s our productive economy. I’d stand up for manufacturing jobs any day against paying for more pokie machines that create immeasurable social harm and are part of a mates deal to an organisation that will profit, might create a few more service economy jobs, but is unlikely add much more real value to our economy.
And I reckon that’s worth sticking up for.
NZ – the new low wage frontier?
Posted by Darien Fenton on April 18th, 2012Fran O’Sullivan reported at the weekend about “New Zealand envy” from Australian businesses :
…the frank admiration across the Tasman for English’s economic policies is something that has not been displayed by Australian power-brokers since this country was in the grip of Rogernomics and Bill Birch’s labour market reforms.
Bad comparison Fran. Who in their right mind would want to own up to admiring the dreadful Bill Birch’s Employment Contracts Act or the damage inflicted by Roger Douglas?
And then today the Dom Post reports that Australian firms are moving jobs to New Zealand, attracted by our low wages and more “flexible” labour rights.
Hundreds of Australian jobs have been shifted to New Zealand as producers there try to avoid the impact of high wages, a soaring dollar and restrictive labour laws.
Supermarket giant Woolworths is the latest to transfer jobs across the Tasman, shifting 40 contact centre jobs to Auckland this week.
Imperial Tobacco has also said it will move cigarette manufacturing from Sydney to New Zealand.
As David Parker says, there are record numbers of Kiwis leaving for Australia. They are not going so they can work in call centres or cigarette-making factories.
“National made closing the wage gap a key election pledge in 2008. It now wants to attract investment to New Zealand on the basis of cheap wages.
Heinz Wattie has already ditched 300 jobs across Australia and supposedly was bringing them to New Zealand.
But not for good New Zealand jobs. These days, a Heinz Watties worker is just as likely to end up being employed by Allied Workforce – a temporary labour hire contractor, and be paid minimum wage – doing the same job directly employed and unionised workers used to do for a whole lot less.
Perhaps the brighter future we were promised involves rolling ciggies for Australia?
It certainly seems to involve low wages.
Time to talk about work
Posted by Darien Fenton on March 19th, 2012James Ritchie, National Secretary of the Dairy Workers Union has a good piece in the NZ Herald today calling for a national conversation about work. It’s a timely call, as we are seeing good jobs in our primary and export industries under threat, with pretty draconian actions being taken by some employers. James Ritchie says that insecure work is destroying our country, saying :
What about the quality of the jobs that are being created, demanded and restructured? Do employers and Government have a responsibility to provide the space to negotiate a decent job?
A decent job is one which is healthy and safe and which allows the worker to have some say over the work and the working conditions. It is an opportunity for training, personal development and ideally for a career path.
A decent job pays enough to keep body and spirit together and provides an environment free from discrimination, harassment, bullying and the constant threat of dismissal.
The enormous growth of insecure work in our society denies individuals opportunities for development. It is almost the only work being offered to young people entering the job market. It is common for workers to be notified to come to work, or told their daily hours, by text message and many have no guaranteed hours or guaranteed time off.
We’re not alone in this. A few weeks ago, I posted about the Precariat and the author, Guy Standing was on Radio NZ this morning talking about a global phenomenon and the risks to society and our future.
Should we in New Zealand just lie down and accept it ? Some have resorted to arguing that any job’s a good job. There’s an attitude that people should be grateful to have a job and the gradual erosion of job security and decent pay and conditions is just a fact of life.
Some are even getting into “deserving” workers and the “non deserving” workers. I’ve heard almost no-one criticise the Oceania aged care workers (and I strongly support them), but others, like the Port workers, standing up for decent work, built up over years of negotiation and give and take are pilloried as jurassic and unreasonable, despite one of the more flexible collective agreements I’ve seen.
We can keep doing this to ourselves. But we will pay a price – and in fact, we already are. Ask many Kiwis and they’ve more than likely already booked their ticket to Australia, or likely still, their kids, like mine, have already fled. Others are depending on support from the Sallies or other organisations, or just getting by because of Working for Families. It’s not a pretty picture.
So I agree with James. Time to have a national conversation about work. Not just about jobs, not just about where are the jobs, but what kind of jobs?
So what has Michael Woodhouse got to say?
Posted by Clare Curran on March 7th, 2012Last year nearly 14,000 (mostly Dunedin) people signed a petition to parliament. It demanded the Government take immediate action to ensure KiwiRail did not reduce its workforce at the Hillside and Woburn rail engineering workshops and called for the state-owned enterprise to commit to building rolling stock instead of outsourcing contracts to China.
The petition was put before the Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee.
A report was called for from Kiwirail. But no report was ever sought from those who brought the petition to parliament, despite their repeated pleas.
Over a number of months,Labour members of the committee pressed for the petitioners representatives to have a say before the committee, but to no avail. The RMTU union representing the Hillside workers wrote to the committee. They were ignored.
I asked questions of the chair of the committee in the House as to whether the petitioner would have the chance to appear and put their case, but received evasive answers.
The final report of the committee was tabled yesterday in parliament. It contained a minority report from Labour strongly protesting at the refusal of the committee to allow the workers and those opposed to giving Kiwi jobs and contracts to the Chinese to have a say.
Dunedin-based List MP Michael Woodhouse sat on that committee until parliament dissolved late last year. He sought the cloak of committee confidentiality to protect him from commenting on his views.
I think it’s time to ask him whether he supported the right of the Hillside workers, their union and all of those who signd that petition to put their case to a parliamentary select committee.
When you sign a petition you should have that expectation. Especially if there has been considerable public interest in the issue. Which there has been.
The ODT story today sums it up. It is an erosion of democracy and an utter disgrace and Michael Woodhouse should front up and tell the nearly 14,000 people why he blocked their right to have a say.
Youth NEETs change since 2008
Posted by Sua William Sio on February 26th, 2012
Youth NEETs
Despite the foodhardy belief by some that all is well with New Zealand employment under National, if they would just pull their heads out of John Key’s armpits for a second and took seriously that our unemployment rate from Dec 2008 to Dec 2011 has doubled, and these are NOT just numbers but REAL people with families to support, then perhaps they might get a sense of the looming employment crisis that I’m talking about. Take note of the job losses so far announced with MFAT, Air NZ, and a host of other companies that have laid off workers in the last few months.
What should also compoud our collective concern is the increasing numbers of Youth Not in Employment, Education or Training. As of December 2011 they numbered 83,000 as highlighted in the graph above.
Some might be providing homecare to family members but I suspect the vast majority are drifting doing nothing. These are our future leaders – now mostly at risk. Without work, without skills and without the hope for a better future, what will be the chances of them slipping into drugs, alchoholism, crime and benefit dependency? If these trends continue to worsen, what is there to stop it from becoming a ticking time bomb making New Zealand susceptible to the kinds of riots we’ve witnessed on TV occuring in Europe and the likes.
The NZ Institute who released proposals last year of reducing youth disadvantage estimated that the cost of youth unemployment, youth incarceration, youth on the sole parent benefit and taxes forgone, is around $900 million per year. Youth Not in Employment, Education or Training is not only a tragic waste of talent and potential, but we also all carry the cost.
We should also be worried that Maori & Pasefika youth make up a large number of NEETS. While the 6.3% unemployment rate in NZ is worrying, its not at the crisis levels of the PIGS. But the 6.3% unemployment rate hides the fact that for some parts of New Zealand unemployment truly is at crisis levels. I’ve shown int the graph below the figures by HLFS showing 43.3% of Pasifika 15-19 year olds are unemployed. That’s a shocking figure, right up there with the worst youth unemployment rates of Europe.
Pasifika & Maori Youth Unemployment
National’s job claims vs reality
Posted by Sua William Sio on February 23rd, 2012
National's job claims vs reality
Even though the Household Labour Force Survey report reveals that John Key’s ‘brighter future’ promise has utterly failed to materialise in terms of jobs for a growing group of New Zealanders, it hasn’t stopped Mr Key claiming it won’t still come true. Yet we know he has no overall plan, no vision for how this will happen. Last year he made the incredible claim that Budget 2011 would create 170,000 jobs over the next 5 years. He continued to make this claim despite not being able to show anything in the Budget that would actually lead to job creation other than low interest rates and ECE funding. Simply managing the economy and ticking off boxes and hoping that market forces will deliver on the jobs is unbelievable. As expected the Govt is on track to once again fall short of its promise. The 2011 Budget documents predicted 36,000 jobs would be created in the year to March 2012. As at Dec 2011 just 10,000 jobs have been created, leaving the Govt to create a massive 26,000 jobs in the final quarter. If JohnKey keeps promising New Zealanders the world but not delivering, his credibility will be on the line, and we all know the story of the boy who cried wolf, don’t we?
Total Employment Change from 2008 Reveals Imminent Crisis
Posted by Sua William Sio on February 21st, 2012
Increase in unemployment under National
The Household Labour Force Survey Survey report of the December 2011 Quarter released last week revealed that our unemployment rate slipped slightly to 6.3% from 6.6%. While a rate of 6.3% in itself doesn’t necessarily mean we have reached crisis levels, the focus on the overall unemployment rate does conceal detail about our employment situation that if brought to the surface will shine light on what I believe is an immiment crisis looming in our economic horizon.
Since JohnKey’s National took office in November 2008, 53,000 New Zealanders have joined the unemployment ranks. That’s a 54% increase in the number of people unemployed to a total of 150,000. For these people, National’s promise of a ‘brighter future’ has utterly failed to materialise, especially if you have a mortgage and teenage children you are supporting through school.
While the impact of the recession cannot be ignored, the number of people unemployed has actually increased since the recession officially ended in mid-2009. The official unemployment figures only tell part of the story. Many more people are without work but are not counted as being unemployed. Many are described by the Salvation Army as being “discouraged unemployed”. They would like to work and would accept a job offer if given, but they would not be deemed as actively seeking work because for instance looking for work through a newspaper does not meet the threshold of “actively seeking work”. The number of Kiwis jobless has increased by almost 100,000 under National’s watch to now 261,300 people as of December 2011. In the meantime 59,964 people are receiving the Unemployment Benefit as at December 2011 a fall of 7% from 67,084 as of the December 2010.
So is this it? Is this the brighter future promised to all New Zealanders?
Techno slavery
Posted by Darien Fenton on January 31st, 2012I missed this on Stuff, but heard it on RadioNZ today.
Workers who find themselves answering work emails on their smartphones after the end of their shifts in Brazil can now qualify for overtime under a new law.
The new legislation was approved by President Dilma Rousseff last month.
It says company emails to workers are equivalent to orders given directly to the employee.
Labour attorneys told the Folha de Sao Paulo newspaper the new law makes it possible for workers answering emails after hours to ask for overtime pay.
Judging by the vox pop comments of Brazilian workers on the RadioNZ piece, this isn’t necessarily a popular move. I can understand that. Turning off the emails after hours is a hard thing to do. It has become such a way of life for many working people, but even more so for those who believe their job depends on it.
This issue has started to emerge in several corners of the world. In May 2011, Chicago policeman Jeffrey Allen filed a class action suit against the city, asking for unpaid overtime compensation.
In December 2011, German carmaker Volkswagen agreed to deactivate e-mails on German staff Blackberry devices out of office hours to give them a break.
German telco Deutsche Telekom and consumer goods maker Henkel have also introduced measures to curb after-hours emails to reduce the pressure on workers to be always on call.
Remember the “work life balance” stuff we used to talk about?
Am I just old-fashioned in thinking that working lives are important, but so are our families as well?
Bon voyage to more whanau in 2012
Posted by Darien Fenton on January 19th, 2012There’s been a lot of baloney in the media recently about the role (or control) of unions in Labour and a view that by supporting fairness at work means Labour must be anti-employer or anti-business. Mind you, none of this is new, but it’s reached a new peak of hysterical comment from some on the right with the PoAL dispute.
There’s no mystery about Labour’s values when it comes to working people. Our founding values are about decent Kiwi jobs, the right to a fair day‘s pay for a fair day’s work, the right to join unions and bargain collectively, the right to have a voice at work and the right to be protected from unfair or unsafe treatment at work. We believe that there must be a balance between work demands and family/community responsibilities.
This doesn’t mean business is harder to do – in fact decent wages and effective employment relations should enable New Zealand business to lift productivity, to perform well and to grow.
Labour supports decent work (which is also supported by the National government at the ILO) and fair incomes for all New Zealand working people - whether in low or middle income jobs, dependent contractors or self employed. I know that constructive workplace relationships are important and good management is crucial. I don’t believe all employers are “bad” and all employees “good”. You may be surprised how much sympathy I have with sole operators and small business who can barely make ends meet.
Some of the workers who get the rawest deal are those who are not in formal employment relationships, or in unions, such as self-employed and dependent contractors. Labour has been active in trying to make improvements for these Kiwis, but there’s nothing on the government’s agenda that makes any difference to them and a whole lot that will impact on all working Kiwis.
Consider these comments from backbench National Party MP Jami-Lee Ross :
Unions still occupy a privileged position in New Zealand’s employment law; a relic of the last Labour administration which has not seen significant overhaul for some years. Few non-government organisations can boast clauses in legislation specifically designed for their benefit. Despite only 18 percent of the nation’s workforce being unionised, trade unions can look to whole sections of the Employment Relations Act written exclusively to aid union survival through legislative advantage.
My question to Jami-Lee is whether the Minister of Labour, Kate Wilkinson, who likes to present her government’s approach to employment relations as “pragmatic” and “what works” agrees with Jami-Lee’s views. I want to know if she thinks unions are “privileged” and “relics”. If she does, she better tell Kiwi workers soon, and fess up to the ILO at her annual sojourn in Geneva this year that she doesn’t believe that unions are social partners anymore, leaving only employers and government – and that our government is opposed to international labour conventions and human rights conventions. That will be interesting.
National’s manifesto already boasts “reforms”, such as :
1. Minimum wage : consultation on the annual review has been completed and we can expect an announcement in February. $15 an hour? Don’t think so.
2. The government’s plan for a “starting out” rate for 16 and 17 year old workers and also for 18 and 19 year olds who have been on a benefit may be one of the early pieces of legislation in front of parliament.
3. National’s policy commitments to weaken collective bargaining – no requirement to conclude, no requirement for workers to be on the terms and conditions of a collective agreement for 30 days where one exists, and the effective abolishing of multi employer agreements, along with allowing pay reductions for “partial” strikes – such as go-slows, work to rule etc and a review of constructive dismissal.
Then there’s all of the rest :
Bills carried forward from the last parliament : Meals and rest breaks legislation (Kate Wilkinson said this was urgent a couple of years ago, but it’s been bumped) and Tau Henare’s Secret Ballot for Strikes members’ bill, which is neither needed nor wanted. The hardy annual of Easter Sunday Shop Trading will also be up again, via a National members’ bill.
The inquiry into the treatment of workers in Foreign Crewed Vessels in NZ waters and the Pike River Mine Commission of Inquiry will report back this year - both shameful NZ scandals that arose because of deregulation and declining standards for workers.
The ACC portfolio and the “opening up to competition” will be a big issue; Labour MP Andrew Little will take that on for Labour.
And I’m becoming more suspicious about another agenda – not spelled out in the National Party’s manifesto. The recent productivity commission report, for example, made some recommendations that, if taken up by this government, would have a huge impact on New Zealand working people.
Bottom line : none of this will help the wages of Kiwi workers catch up with Australia. None of it will stop the weekly exodus across the ditch.
I’m sorry, but unless we see some something other than the old hoary chestnuts of cutting workers’ rights and pay from National soon, you should get ready to say goodbye to more of your whanau.
Lockouts, layoffs and livelihoods
Posted by Darien Fenton on November 23rd, 2011The lockout of more than 100 workers at ANZCO CMP Meatworks in Marton is now in its second month over the employer’s demand for 20% paycuts and increased workloads. Efforts by the workers’ union to reach a compromise so far have been rejected. The local community, food-banks and workers from around the country, many of whom are already struggling from the impact of cost of living increases,are digging deep to help these workers feed their families. That can’t carry on. Families are hurting, the local economy is suffering and New Zealand’s international reputation is being affected.
Predictably, there’s been silence from the Minister of Labour and John Key in this very serious situation, and they’ve left their hapless and inexperienced Rangitikei candidate to deal with it.
Then there’s the almost daily announcements of lay-offs. Today it’s Milton Woollen Mills. Yesterday, it was Sleepyhead.
The National Party Industrial Relations policy for this election will encourage more of the hard-line tactics being used by ANZCO CMP. They want to give employers the right to veto multi-employer collective agreements, refuse to conclude collective bargaining, and put workers on individual agreements when they start work.
National’s priorities for early legislation, announced today, include cutting pay for young workers and privatising the ACC work account. How sad is that?
The last time a National government tried these race to the bottom ideas, the wage gap with Australia grew enormously, workers lost long-held conditions, low pay became endemic in many important industries and we lost a generation of skilled workers.
John Key insists that he will build a brighter future (actually, I thought he promised that last election).
There’s no brighter future for laid off or locked out workers, or those who only got a 25 cents increase in the minimum wage this year.
Clear choice Saturday.
It’s About Jobs
Posted by Grant Robertson on November 15th, 2011There is one issue that comes up at almost every meeting, in every town that I have visited in this election, and that is Jobs. Either the general lack of them, or the kinds of jobs that might bring home the children(and grandchildren) that have left, and seem unlikely to return.
Today Labour released our plan for jobs. Its six points and it brings together some key strands of our policy that we believe will drive job growth. The six areas are
• A savings scheme that will provide new investment for New Zealand businesses;
• Support innovation to develop new products to sell to the rest of the world;(including restoring the R and D Tax Credit)
• Change monetary policy to support exporters against a volatile New Zealand dollar;
• Help unemployed youth into training and apprenticeships;
• Stimulate the economy by putting money into the pockets of those who need it;
• Making Kiwi jobs a consideration when issuing government contracts.
The details behind each of these policies is in the attached document. This is about an active government that works with business to create jobs instead of sitting on the sidelines. Its an important building block to owning our future.
Creative Industry Apprenticeships
Posted by Grant Robertson on November 6th, 2011
On Thursday, along with Shane Jones I visited MainReactor. (That’s not Shane in the middle of the photo by the way 
) This is a great Kiwi firm based in Henderson that makes props and prosthetics for the film and television industry. If you are watching Spartacus you are watching their work, and numerous movies as well. They have employed dozens of people over the last few years, drawing together those with artistic skill into what is also a complex engineering environment. Roger Murray the founder of the company (pictured on the right above) has ideas for expansion, and is on a roll which sees studios seeking out the integrated skills present in his team.
A major point of our discussion was around the training needs to keep this industry going. Roger and his firm have invested a great deal in training of people in what is a highly specialised area. The nature of the film and tv business is that there will be down times, and it can be hard to keep the infrastructure of a skilled workforce in place.
Labour released its Arts, Culture and Heritage policy last week, and a core part of it is the creation of Creative Industries Apprenticeships, that will support people into the industry to give us the workforce that can keep our creative industries going. Roger and his team were excited to hear about the idea, and so are others in the creative sector. Its one thing we can do to draw together the brilliant creative talent we have with the kind of economic growth that is the future of New Zealand. Good policy that will make a difference.
John’s Ghost Jobs
Posted by Grant Robertson on November 2nd, 2011
Always hard with these viral things to know who to acknowledge, but the brilliant Legend drink driving ad has crossed over to the campaign. The National Party welfare announcement as the Herald editorial acknowledges this morning ” needs the jobs first”. It’s not a comprehensive reform. It is shuffling around of names of benefits, work testing the mothers of one year olds- and all without a plan to actually create the jobs that will get people off benefits.
Since 2010 National have been promising there are 170,000 jobs going to be created, but they never come, instead we have an additional 60,000 people on benefits since they took office. Its seems the only jobs out there are John’s ghost jobs.
McCully embarrassed by tuppawaka TVNZ banned
Posted by Trevor Mallard on October 13th, 2011Can someone explain why McCully (Minister of RWC) can toss $2m towards the tuppawaka which is built on public land but support a ban on TVNZ filming the opening event.
Then there are questions of value for money, priorities etc.
A nation of makers #4
Posted by Clare Curran on September 24th, 2011Yesterday, US President Barack Obama spoke from the Brent Spence bridge over the Ohio River about the vital connection between jobs and infrastructure repair.
The Brent Spence bridge has been rated functionally obsolete and unsafe, it carries nearly twice the traffic it was designed to handle, and earlier this year, chunks of concrete fell from its upper level.2 And it isn’t the only essential piece of infrastructure that’s falling apart.
It’s shameful that our bridges are literally crumbling while construction workers are unable to find employment. America’s infrastructure needs work, and Americans need jobs.
The solution is obvious: Put people back to work repairing our bridges, dams, highways, schools, and the rest of our failing infrastructure.
We’re putting pressure on Congress to pass a jobs plan that does just that. But we need to make the problem visible. That’s why the American Dream movement is setting out to find and photograph the jobs that need doing—and we need your help.
I received this email early this morning from MoveOn, a political network which is driving progressive change in the US.
Tell Congress: America has jobs that need doing
We don’t have anything like that here. But we do have skills shortages, we have infrastructure that needs repairing, rethinking and renewing, while the national Government spends billions on new highways.
We have a government that is actively dumping existing skills sets (rail) . A govt that is not investing enough in apprenticeships. That doesn’t have a plan to create jobs.
Labour would not dump our rail engineering skills. We’d foster them. We will invest in apprentices trainig for our young people. We do have a plan to grow jobs in strategic industries.
Let’s do what Moveon is doing in the US and show the government what needs doing.
Can you take a picture of a job that needs doing in your community? It could be a bridge, dam, road, school, or any other piece of our infrastructure that needs repair, rethinking. Email it to me clare.curran@parliament.govt.nz
A nation of makers #3
Posted by Clare Curran on September 24th, 2011DFT 7295 (that’s the loco) hauls two of KiwiRail’s new AK class passenger cars and a rebuilt viewing car on their delivery run from Dunedin to Christchurch this week . The AK class passenger cars were built by KiwiRail’s own Hillside Engineering plant in Dunedin. These two cars will be used for staff training, before being used on long distance services. These are the first two of 17.
This is what Kiwis can do. Build stuff. Quality stuff. We should be proud of this.
Instead the National Govt is sending work overseas that could be done here. As a result Kiwis are losing their jobs, settling for lesser jobs or heading to Australia.
Why can’t we do it here? Even if it costs a bit more (by Chinese standards) the standards are demonstrably higher, we keep the skills inside NZ, we pay wages, they pay tax. It’s better for the country.
Labour would get the work done here. The Hillside and Woburn rail workshops have huge potential. Not just for rail.
I know Kiwirail has been approached by other Kiwi companies keen to get other manufacturing and fabricating work done here. I also understand that Kiwirail’s head office isn’t too keen on actively purusing these ideas.
Why is that? Have they been told to run the workshops down. Surplus to requirements? If so this is a national scandal.
Three years ago the nation was full of hope about Kiwirail’s potential. Today the name has been tarnished and associated with a political push to grind down a proud and productive manufacturing industry and skill base.
Hat tip (for the video clip): Julian Blanchard, Labour’s candidate for Rangitata
Another skeleton for Invercargill?
Posted by A Guest Poster on September 9th, 2011Lesley Soper is the Labour candidate for Invercargill
This week it was announced that the Department of Conservation (DOC) is to cut 96 jobs around the country from 4 regional centres. 18 jobs will go from the Invercargill office, leaving only 20 of the 38 existing service positions in place. All staff in service positions will have to reapply for their jobs.
The cuts follow the National Government 2009 cut to DOC’s Budget of $54million over 4 years, which means there are probably more to come in the next stage of the ‘Review’ for efficiency and effectiveness.
Once again the regions suffer, with Northland; Tongariro/Whanganui/Taranaki; and Nelson/Marlborough also to suffer job cuts. Valuable locals, contributing to their communities economically and socially, with institutional loyalty, knowledge and years of long service are forced into job scrambles; onto the dole queue; overseas; or into short-term and insecure contract work. The regional economies and communities lose out; real people doing valuable jobs lose out; and DOC is expected to do more with less.
Southland has a significant amount of conservation land, and DOC protects places and species that Southlanders value. Jobs to go include science, technical, communications, planning and legal, but for the present no ranger positions. So jobs that allow good conservation outcomes to be achieved and rangers to be rangers go. Cut to the bone and only the skeleton remains.
Is 19 or 20 the new preferred size du jour for public service Regional offices? How long before ‘efficiences of scale’ mean the size du jour is in single figures?
Again, local public service cuts that no-one can feel comfortable about. Silence from local National MP’s on any reasons why.
Jacinda Ardern – an MP for Auckland Central who cares
Posted by Trevor Mallard on September 7th, 2011
