PARLIAMENT | PARTY | GRASSROOTS

Red Alert

Archive for the ‘union’ Category

Bon voyage to more whanau in 2012

Posted by Darien Fenton on January 19th, 2012

There’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.

Tags: , ,
Filed under: ACC, Employers, Health and Safety, Work and Wages, Workers, jobs, union, value of work
16 Comments

National’s Cold War

Posted by Darien Fenton on November 12th, 2011

National’s policy on “Employment Relations” has all the language of the days of the Cold War  – it’s going to ruin us; it’s taking us back to the bad old days, there will be strikes on the waterfront, unions will be in control, blah, blah, blah.

They devote a whole page to Labour’s plan to lift wages (and at least Labour has a plan). They try to position it as a return to 1970’s industrial relations, with a whole lot of rubbish about strikes and awards. Most people can hardly remember that far back, but we do know that New Zealand wages are too low and something works better across the ditch – and guess what?  It’s a centralised wage fixing system, where wages are set by a Fair Work Commission – a system that goes well beyond the changes Labour is proposing.

Try telling an Aussie worker  they have a 1970’s industrial relations system and wait for the snorts of derision – and the 100,000 plus New Zealand workers who’ve gone for good to work in Australia because the wage gap is now 38% .  All they know is National has no plan.

My favourite bit of the policy is this, written by the National Party Cold War Propaganda Unit (aka Steven Joyce) :

(Labour will ) “Choke the economy by reinstating 1970s national awards and create a bureaucracy to centrally fix wages – a step back in time by more than 30 years, and a recipe for strikes and industrial action. In times like these, the last thing we need is an economy controlled by a small cadre of union leaders.

Cadre?  That is so funny. All that tells me is that National is completely out of touch with the New Zealand of today, where the majority of Zealand union members in New Zealand are women, working in public services, health, education and the community services sector.

Nek minnet : Dancing Cossacks.

Tags:
Filed under: Workers, union
50 Comments

The importance of being Labour #2

Posted by Clare Curran on August 22nd, 2011

And on another note, re white-anting; the attempts by the Greens to encroach on Labour territory is also happening in Australia. Former AWU Secretary Bill Shorten (now Assistant Finance Minister) got it right when he said that people will always need unions and that Labor and unions were a “bulwark of democracy”.

“The idea that people, when they go to work, don’t need assistance is wrong.”

Mr Shorten said his view of unionism was not based on the idea that workers were stupid or unable to think for themselves.

But an individual working in a large company would always need support.

“The company has a human resources manager, the company belongs to an employer association, the company has lawyers,” he said.

“Who do you have?”

Mr Shorten said Labor’s mission to deliver social justice remained in place and that the party’s strongest asset was its ability to tailor policies to help people cope with change.

He said he did not want to spark a verbal stoush with the Greens but noted that the minor party had no economic story.

The New Zealand Labour Party has its roots in the trade union movement. The unions are evolving and adapting as they should.The Labour Party draws on talent from many walks of life, as it should. It’s perspectives are not always in direct alignment with unions.

But let’s not every forget where we came from and what our enduring values are. And how important that relationship is.

I won’t.

Filed under: #ownourfuture, economy, labour, union
104 Comments

The Business Codgerati

Posted by Darien Fenton on June 26th, 2011

There’s been a lot of flak about Alasdair Thompson’s comments last week (and rightly so). He’s shown the worst side of the business codgerati. Business organisations and right-wing acolytes like Jenny Shipley have been distancing themselves big time. The organisation he heads, the Employers and Manufacturing Association (Northern) is having a Board meeting tomorrow to decide his future.

The Sunday Star Times editorial says today that “it’s reminded us silly we used to be” and how this kind of standard sexism was once standard in New Zealand politics and business…….“it’s so 1950’s.”

The SST goes on to say :

“But we should not be too complacent about this.  If bosses have become more enlightened and workplaces more friendly to women and minorities, in some ways they are more worker-unfriendly than they used to be……  in some ways workers have less power to push for change than they had in the 1950’s.  Some employers think this is fine; they regard unions as obstacles to commercial progress. That is about as crass a stereotype as the one about the skiving menstruators.”

That is so true and well done to the SST for nailing this. While every business organisation now spouts their policies on equal employment opportunity, flexible working hours, work life balance and their opposition to discrimination their prejudices are still there for all to see among many of them.

Every time there’s talk about giving workers more bargaining power or strengthening their rights, the codgerati are out there, saying “it’s a return to the past” or “it’s going to ruin us”.

Witness the reaction to the $15 minimum wage and ACT’s backward looking ideas that youth rates are going to solve youth unemployment.

Still a long way to go.

Tags: ,
Filed under: Employers, act party, business, economy, labour, minimum wage, union, workers rights
9 Comments

The Hobbit – We have a right to know

Posted by Carol Beaumont on May 24th, 2011

Great piece by Brent Edwards on Morning Report this morning. http://www.radionz.co.nz/national/programmes/morningreport (scroll down to ‘Ombudsman backs Government secrecy over Hobbit deal’)

I listened and thought what has the Government got to hide?  $30 million of taxpayers’ money and an amendment to our Employment Relations legislation removing basic rights from all workers in the film industry under Urgency and therefore with no public input - surely we have the right to know why?

We have had a lot to say about this issue. Some examples – Darien Fenton’s April 2011 blog http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/04/12/hobbit-revisited/;  my January 2011 blog http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2011/01/06/honesty-and-the-hobbit//; Trevor Mallard’s  December 2010 blog http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2010/12/22/we-believe-in-the-right-to-unionise-some-people-dont/; Sue Moroney’s October 2010  blog http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2010/10/29/whos-next/ and Clare Curran’s  October 2010 blog http://blog.labour.org.nz/index.php/2010/10/29/nz-law-brought-to-you-by-warner-bros/because it is an issue of sovereignty as well as an issue of (mis)use of tax payer money and workers rights.  Furthermore we are a long way from hearing the full story and there have been so many inconsistencies in what the Government has said throughout this whole sorry saga.

 For me the Hobbit saga is a clear example of the moral bankruptcy of John Key’s Government.   He still seeks to manipulate the facts as was evidenced by his appalling Budget speech which referred to Labour members as “Hobbit haters”.

Tags: ,
Filed under: Films, democracy, union, workers rights
18 Comments

Christchurch earthquake : workers

Posted by Darien Fenton on March 1st, 2011

The focus of the last week has been on rescue; and on who have lost their lives. That’s as it should be.

We mourn the dead, particularly those workers who were just going about their daily working lives when the earthquake struck. But the hard stuff starts now. The earthquake will take its toll most on working people and their families.

Sadly there’s a lot more grief to come. I’m relieved to hear that union and Labour staff are fine, but there have been injuries and family or union members among the missing and the dead. The Trade Union Centre in downtown Christchurch looks munted and workers had to climb across the bricks to safety. Unions are looking for somewhere else to come together as they assess the damage to lives and jobs. They have as important a role in this tragedy as anyone else and their members will turn to them for help and support.

It’s workers and union members who are at the forefront of the effort facing Christchurch right now – the firefighters, rescue workers, health workers, social support workers, education workers, to name just a few.  Stories are emerging of workers who took brave action to save workmates in precarious situations.

Caregivers have helped relocate hundreds of older adults from aged care facilities to other parts of the country, others have kept caring for their charges with disabilities, nurses have rolled up their sleeves and reported for work and MSD workers around the country have been on the phone to the vulnerable in the Christchurch community. Thousands of workers have volunteered to provide food, shelter, transport and friendship.  This is despite the losses among the working community of Christchurch.

Forgive me, but I can’t help but note the irony that we are relying so much on the public service to be at the forefront of this. This is, in case you have forgotten, “the bloated public service” Bill English likes to talk about.

Redundancy announcements have begun – the first in a Christchurch rest home on Friday. Today, more than 230 jobs in New World supermarkets. There will be issues about pay, ACC, health and safety, and access to support. There will be an avalanche of job losses and, sadly, a build up of trauma. Many workers have witnessed things that will be with them for a long time to come.

The government has made some announcements, which are a good start.  There needs to be more and I hope there will be. One suggestion: they should consider removing tax on redundancy pay, so workers can make any payments they receive stretch a bit further before they have to ask for work and income assistance.

We have to be there for the workers of Christchurch. Sadness, grief, loss come first – but then a whole lot more as the impact on every day workers lives and those of their families emerge.

Let’s stand with them.

Filed under: Health and Safety, Workers, union, workers rights
27 Comments

Waitangi and ANZAC day confusion

Posted by Trevor Mallard on February 6th, 2011

Just to make it clear that having a public holiday on the Monday after Waitangi Day or ANZAC day when they fall on a weekend or another public holiday, doesn’t mean you celebrate them on the Monday.

They would just be treated like Christmas, Boxing Day, New Years Day and the day after.

No great secret that I looked at the issue when in government and decided that implementing four weeks annual holiday for all every year was a higher priority. What is now clear is that the public want both and as soon as possible.

And while we are sorting out these anomalies we should sort Easter Sunday as well. It is probably the most important day on the Christian calendar, but because when we sorted our public holidays no one contemplated shops opening or people working on a Sunday it was left off the list. That needs to be fixed.

Tags: , ,
Filed under: Employers, economy, inequality, labour, minimum wage, retail, union, workers rights
17 Comments

It’s about Time

Posted by Carol Beaumont on January 19th, 2011

I have had a wonderful holiday this year as I hope you did if you had time off.  I really enjoyed  having more time to do things that get squeezed during the working year. Time to spend with family and friends, time to be alone, time to walk , to read and to reflect.  I am sure as we made our resolutions for 2011 or reflected on the year ahead many of us thought about spending more time on things other than work and trying to achieve better balance in our lives. 

In my previous role as CTU Secretary I led our work on the issue of work life balance.  In 2004 we produced a publication called ‘It’s about Time’ which looked at the issues around people achieving balance between paid and unpaid work, family and personal time. (You can find a copy on the CTU website www.union.org.nz).  New Zealand has very long working hours compared to many other OECD countries. For low and middle income earners these long hours are often driven by low wages.  Many workers on the minimum wage or just above it work more than one job to try and earn enough to make ends meet.  Long working hours are not solely caused by low wages as can be seen by long hours worked by those earning high salaries.  Work intensification is a well documented phenomena – less people doing the same or more work.  Not by working smarter but by having to work harder and longer. 

Currently there are many New Zealanders with too much non- working time, – the huge number of unemployed and the less well recognised numbers of underemployed.  This lack of paid work is a fundamental problem as it impacts on people’s ability to survive financially.

Time pressures and lack of balance can have major implications for people’s health, their relationships,their ability to participate in community activity or to contribute to their community in a voluntary capacity (a real problem identified by many organisations).

Dealing with this issue has many dimensions.  These include – lifting wages; adequate leave provisions (domestic leave, parental leave, holidays, study leave, unpaid leave); limitations on working hours  (NZ is very unregulated in this area); recognising and valuing unpaid work;  changing workplace cultures and real flexibility in working arrangements (flexibility in the context of secure quality work, not the one sided flexibility  in the many precarious working arrangements that becoming increasingly common).  In ‘It’s about Time’ a number of very practical and positive examples of such arrangements negotiated between unions and employers are provided.  These can vary from quite small changes at work eg ensuring employees can access a phone, to arrangements to reduce work hours (temporarily or permanently) or to have greater flexibility regarding  working hours or work location through to additional leave provisions (above statutory provisions). 

There was good progress made by the last Labour government, for example -  paid parental leave, legislating for a minimum of 4 weeks annual leave, legislating around the flexible working hours (something the unlamented Pansy Wong claimed credit for National even though they voted against this!), requiring rest and meal breaks and regular increases in the minimum wage.

In two years of this National government we have gone backwards fast.  Not only has there been no focus on improving the quality of working life but in fact there has been an ideologically driven attack on holidays and rest and meal breaks.  From 1 April this year it will be possible to sell the 4th week of annual leave.  Sadly leave will be sold not because most people want less annual leave but because of financial pressures.  It is tough financially for low and middle income New Zealanders. 

Labour is already showing that we will continue assisting people achieve balance in their lives by indicating that we will look at enhancing paid parental leave as part of a comprehensive focus on child development.  This would be a very positive move for families and for society by increasing the chances of parents having quality time to bond with their babies.

The benefits of creating opportunities for people to better balance paid work with family, unpaid work, studying, taking part in community activities and helping others are wide ranging.  This includes to individuals, to their  children and other dependents, to employers by ensuring better recruitment and retention of a broader pool of employees and to the community as people can participate in the sporting, cultural, service, religious and other organisations that make up our society.  For lifelong learning to be the norm we need this sort of flexibility too.

I believe this is an important debate to have.  It is about our quality of life.   An ageing population makes it imperative and adds new dimensions to the issue,  for example the increasing number of people trying to care for children or grandchildren and ageing parents, or the needs of older workers who will want or be expected to be in the workforce for longer and who will have particular limits on their time at (paid) work.  This is also an important issue whether or not a person has caring responsibilities.  The demands on peoples time vary throughout their life.  For example a young person without children may want flexibility to finish a qualification or travel or play competitive sport as well as being in paid work.

We are all probably aware of people who regret that they didn’t do certain things during their life, commonly many people regret  that they didn’t spend more time with their family.  I don’t think that when people look back on their lives there are many who regret that they didn’t spend more time in paid work.  A very interesting piece of research by an Australian academic, Barbara Pocock, shows quite clearly that what children want most is quality time with their parents. 

It’s about Time!

Filed under: Employers, Holidays, Meals and Rest Breals, low pay, union, unpaid work, work life balance, workers rights
1 Comment

Job Survivor Island

Posted by Darien Fenton on January 12th, 2011

jobsurvivorAccording to Labour Department research, one in five workers could be fired under the government’s extension to its 90 day no rights law, due to commence on 1 April. So, the CTU has set up Job Survivor Island, where you can choose which one of five workers should be fired and sent from the island. But, they warn, don’t think about it too hard because you don’t actually need a reason to sack them thanks to the government’s new employment law. However, the site does give an alternative to taking the low road and I hope lots of employers read and think about these options.

Not looking good for State Sector workers either, with the government insisting that this “voluntary” law be imposed in every State Sector agreement.

So much for the promises of Minister Wilkinson.

Tags:
Filed under: 90 day trial period, union
77 Comments

Honesty and The Hobbit

Posted by Carol Beaumont on January 6th, 2011

Refreshingly honest comments by John Drinnan in Tuesday’s NZ Herald in his A – Z of a challenging year in the media:

“Acting Up – Talk about Fantasyland. Sir Peter Jackson depicted the Hobbit dispute as a passionate quest to defy the evil unions and keep the movie in New Zealand. It was of course, about money, power and keeping unions out.  For producers and actors it was business – part of the old battle for power between capital and labour.  But the media have a role in reporting that battle – and their one sided, naive and simplistic coverage of the dispute was shameful.  With a few honourable exceptions – notably this paper – many in the media unquestioningly backed producers’ versions of events and whipped up hysteria in a manner reminiscent of the 1951 waterfront dispute.  Not the media’s finest hour.”

I absolutely agree with the comments about the coverage being shameful.  Many in the media facilitated the vilification of people who were trying to protect the interests of those working in the industry – Jennifer Ward- Lealand, Robyn Malcolm and Helen Kelly.  There was the deliberate union bashing, which sadly many seem to accept without question, and the failure to indentify and highlight the inconsistencies and omissions in what the Government and Peter Jackson were saying (for example Peter Jackson said in 2009 that the Hobbit was likely to be lost to NZ because the financial incentives were insufficient).

I am glad that someone in the media is recognising these facts. I am glad too that the material released under the Official Information Act just before Xmas shows what information was available to John Key and other National MPs (and when it was available).  It will be interesting to see what role they played in misleading the media and the response of the Speaker to Trevor Mallard’s questions about Gerry Brownlee misleading the House .

Tags: ,
Filed under: media, union, workers rights
31 Comments

Brownlee privilege letter

Posted by Trevor Mallard on December 24th, 2010

While most of us will be easing down today thought a few nerds will still be interested in the fact that I have written to the Speaker following Brownlee’s Hobbit comments and the release on the facts.

Will continue to look at Key’s comments but to date his most blatant misleading appears to be of the media.

Letter below (more…)

Tags: , , ,
Filed under: Arts and Culture, labour, parliament, union
33 Comments

We believe in the right to unionise – some people don’t

Posted by Trevor Mallard on December 22nd, 2010

Trevor + Helen Kelly

This is the latest from Sir Peter on the Hobbit debacle. It makes the agenda very very clear. Sad really. Diminishes one of my heroes and undermines my faith in our processes of government at the same time.

Worse, it was clear to ourselves and to the studio that the MEAA, had an agenda to unionize the NZ film industry by exploiting a grey area that existed in employment law. The change in the law, which clarified the independent contractor status of film industry workers, gave the studio confidence that the film could made in New Zealand without the threat of unjustified ongoing industrial action and for that we remain very grateful.

The area of law wasn’t grey. It dates back a long way and was confirmed in 2005. It drew a line between contractors and employees and Sir Peter has made all of his films on that legal basis. it worked. To deny that is nonsense.

Tags: ,
Filed under: jobs, minimum wage, national, union, urgency, wages, workers rights, workforce
64 Comments

Twas the week before Christmas….

Posted by Grant Robertson on December 21st, 2010

At the risk of being told that all governments do it, National has really out done itself for the week before Christmas dump of stories you don’t like. Not content with the OIA release that shows that a large chunk of the Hobbit debacle was totally unnecessary and opportunistic, and that Gerry Brownlee called Helen Kelly a liar when he knew that was not fair, we now have confirmation of the privatisation of ACC. Bear in mind Ministers have had this report for six months and have refused OIA requests for it. This is political cynicism at its worst.

Of course there is no chance of getting comment from John Key or Gerry Brownlee because they have already left on their holiday. Mr Key has been unavailable to explain whether he or Murray McCully misled Parliament about the Dalai Lama. Apparently they don’t have phones in Hawaii.

The ACC decision will most definitely be a major political issue. I am more than happy to see the focus go on privatisation and asset sales next year, as it seems that is where National is going. We have rehearsed the arguments around privatisation of ACC before- ordinary New Zealanders will pay more and get less as insurance companies seek to maximise their profits. Our globally well regarded scheme, with lower overheads than private schemes is compromised and we go back to the 90s for no good reason.

Anyway, at least we all know one question for the first question time of next year.

Tags: , , ,
Filed under: ACC, democracy, labour, union
63 Comments

Pay the paye Unite

Posted by Trevor Mallard on December 4th, 2010

One of the basic obligations of any employer is to pass the deductions (both paye and kiwisaver) from employees onto the IRD.

The money is effectively employees money held in  trust as it transits to the government.

To dip into it for campaigns or other purposes is not acceptable.

Unions are meant to be good employers and honest beyond any question. If Unite have been dipping into their employees tax and kiwisaver money then it needs to be sorted quickly or the union will have no future.

Filed under: Tax, union
24 Comments

Australian workers raising money for Pike River families

Posted by Clare Curran on December 3rd, 2010

A show of solidarity from acrosss the ditch. The Australian Workers Union (AWU) represents the miners at Beaconsfield in Tasmania where there was another mining accident several years ago.

Good on them

Just one of many acts of kindness being shown around our country and the globe on this.

AWU members donating to support New Zealand Pike River Families

03 December 2010

The tragic deaths at New Zealand’s Pike River mine has affected many Australian Workers’ Union members who have contacted the national office asking if they can donate money to support the families left behind.

australia and new zealand350 4ce64ff9965e3 [australia and new zealand350 4ce64ff9965e3.jpg]Already AWU members in Tasmania have donated more than $1000 to our New Zealand sister union’s EPMU Pike River Miners Families Support Trust.

AWU members who want to support the donation drive can send cheques made out  to: “ EPMU Pike River Families Support Trust” care of the EPMU, PO Box 14-277, Kilbirnie, Wellington, 6241, New Zealand.

Tags:
Filed under: community, union
5 Comments

The madness continues

Posted by Darien Fenton on November 1st, 2010

The sorry saga of the Hobbit has lent itself to a union bashing frenzy the like of which hasn’t been seen in many years. In some ways, it reminds me of Don Brash’s now infamous Orewa speech on race, which unleashed a tide of unexpected racism.

The madness continues, with Matthew Hooten writing in the NBR that perhaps the law around good faith needs to be reviewed :

Good faith is meant to be a mutual obligation, requiring parties to interact constructively. It covers the whole relationship between employer and employee, not just formal bargaining, and includes not only current but intended employers and employees – including those working under commercial contracts who want to become employees. … .

Not even in their fevered imaginations could it be considered good faith to conspire with militant union thugs across the English-speaking world to organise a global boycott of a vitally important project which already pays above industry averages – and all without even giving prior warning to the employer of their intention to do so.

Matthew Hooten isn’t known for his well balanced views on unions and workers’ rights and as a commentator, he can be a nasty piece of work – for example, he says in the piece that :

Australian unions are overbearingly powerful and notoriously corrupt, with historic links to organised crime.

And then he’s into more conspiracy.

Actors aren’t alone in making a mockery of “good faith.” Similar conduct is under way in secondary schools from the PPTA, a union with a history of communist connections. It has no intention of dealing in good faith with the Ministry of Education because its true objective is industrial havoc in election year. The primary teachers’ union will no doubt also find a pretext for havoc in 2011, probably over national standards – a policy which, like few others, has received overwhelming mandates from parents and voters. Other unions plan to sabotage the Rugby World Cup.

The whole piece is misleading, especially as (duh) performers employed as independent contractors in the film industry aren’t covered by the Employment Relations Act. Either Hooten completely misses the point, or is flying a kite for others. Watch this space.

I wouldn’t mind good faith being beefed up a it more. The government continues to maintain that its 90 day no rights law still has the protection of good faith.  Of course there are no remedies available to a worker if good faith is breached, so it is pretty meaningless.

But to suggest that good faith could encompass prevention of global solidarity by and between unions is bizarre.

Next someone will saying that it’s a breach of good faith for global corporations to dictate labour laws in New Zealand!

Filed under: international, union, workers rights
36 Comments

Key forgets about US FTA as he reduces worker protection for Warner Bros.

Posted by Trevor Mallard on October 31st, 2010

When I was Minister of Labour we signed up to two big trade deals China and P4 (NZ, Chile, Singapore and Brunei.

Both pretty big deals – the associated memoranda were designed to protect us from undercutting – the competitive race to the bottom of the wage/skills spectrum. CTU and Business NZ both played a positive role because they saw our future heading up that spectrum.

Since then both organisations have been supportive of the work both governments have been doing on a NZ/US FTA. The CTU have worked with the AFLCIO whose support will be vital especially but not only for Democrat members of the house who must approve any agreement or at least give the President permission to negotiate with particular conditions. And Democrats and US unions don’t naturally support free trade. Nor for that matter do a significant proportion of Republicans.

The Memorandum of Understanding between China and New Zealand is very clear :-

4. The Parties recognise that it is inappropriate to encourage trade or investment by weakening or reducing the protections afforded in domestic labour laws, regulations, policies and practices.

As is the P4 Memorandum of Understanding

5. The Parties recognise that it is inappropriate to set or use their labour laws, regulations, policies and practices for trade protectionist purposes.

6. The Parties recognise that it is inappropriate to encourage trade or investment by weakening or reducing the protections afforded in domestic labour laws.

The important point for this blog is that it is inappropriate to reduce protections to encourage investment.

Which is exactly what the government did in order to secure the Warners Hobbit investment.

I don’t think it is likely that anyone will take a case against us – but one thing is for certain, any plans we had to work with the AFLCIO towards a US free trade deal died when Key gave Warners the pen on our industrial relations legislation.

Tags: ,
Filed under: Employers, Skills, coalition management, economy, regulation, sick leave, union, value of work, workforce
40 Comments

A Shortcut to Disaster

Posted by Damien O'Connor on October 28th, 2010

I have learnt today that the Food Safety Authority in collaboration with the meat Industry are about to conduct a trial on a new system of meat inspection at freezing works without the assistance of Meat Inspectors.

It is an interesting contradiction and my fear is that industry self regulation is the object of the exercise. Such ideals have proven all too often to be disastrous from international experience. At a time when the meat industry is under extreme pressure at every level from farmer to marketplace the risk is that inadequate inspection leading to any form of contaminated export meat would cripple our meat exports and reputation as a quality food producing nation.

Apparently no details have been made available to the meat inspectors so the assumption is that chain workers will carry out assessment of the health of the carcasses and the Vets will sign off the consignments for export. If you presume no skill is necessary to be a meat inspector we might be ok. But as I know to get the inspections spot on takes training, skill and experience. One mistake identified by our trading buyers and we are doomed.

The question is, does the risk justify the cost savings if any over time?? It is also ironic that in Select Committee today the Food Safety Authority was trying to convince us of the importance of robust systems for food safety under the new Food Bill.

There will be a few hard Questions for them at the next meeting !!!

Filed under: Consumer Affairs, Uncategorized, agriculture, jobs, labour, rural, trade, union
21 Comments

Hillside and the Hobbit

Posted by Clare Curran on October 24th, 2010

For months, an unlikely group of people has been meeting weekly in Dunedin to try to build a case to convince the government and Kiwirail to spend in New Zealand part of $500 million it has allocated to build electric trains for Auckland.

The Chamber of Commerce, unions reps, the Hillside engineering workshop (in South Dunedin), engineering companies, the Dunedin City Council and all of Dunedin’s MPs (except the new Act one who is certainly now invited) are committed to this issue. Maintaining a strong rail engineering industry in NZ (Hillside in South Dunedin, along with the Woburn workshops in Lower Hutt).

There is a strong case. A report by Berl paid for by the rail union and the DCC and supported by the CTU revealed there would be a significant flow on effect to the NZ (and Dunedin) economies by keeping this work in NZ.

But it seems increasingly obvious that despite their best efforts there’s an equal determination by Kiwirail and the government to have the trains produced offshore. The bottom line is cost. Lowest cost. Possibly influenced by one of our major trading partners.

There is a distinct smell building over the contract process for these trains. In July, four companies were shortlisted by the organisation contracted to do this work. Inexplicably on 3 September, when the RFP was announced, Kiwirail changed the goalposts and six more companies were included (several of which had been excluded first time round).

There’s been a lot of behind the scenes consternation since. There is a mounting belief that one of those companies has been given the nod and that the contract process which will cost the bidders millions to participate in is a farce. I will have more to say on that soon.

The point is, that this issue is about jobs. Jobs for Kiwis and keeping a viable rail engineering industry alive. Kiwirail and the government are intent on making sure that doesn’t happen.

And tomorrow, which is Labour Day, we see rallies being organised to keep The Hobbit movie in NZ. We see a manufactured case being made against a small union supported by the Screen Producers and one of our most prominent citizens Peter Jackson. We are meant to believe that a group of actors asking to negotiate their wages and conditions in NZ has de-railed such a big project.

I don’t think the unions have handled the issue particularly well. I’ll say that upfront. But it’s all about perception. And demonising a small union. Meanwhile the people of NZ are supposed to believe that this govt will do everything it can to keep the Hobbit in this country, when it’s likely that all the movie company really wanted was a bigger tax break. The union is the pawn in this. There will have been a deal stitched up already and the government will be able to announce it has “solved” the problem early next week.

Kiwiblog is now running adverts for the rallies. A clear sign that there’s a bigger play happening.

The Govt will say this issue is about jobs. Hypocrisy is what I call it. And union-bashing.

We want to keep The Hobbit in NZ. We also want the government to be consistent and honest. And we’d like the government to show the same concern for other important industries and jobs in NZ that it is showing for The Hobbit.

Disclosures: Hillside Workshops is in my electorate of Dunedin South. I am a former member of the MEAA and from 1992-93 sat on the MEAA NSW executive (Update: Actually I think it was the Australian Journalists Association, AJA, Union Executive then as it had yet to become the MEAA  but I’d need to check)

Tags: ,
Filed under: economy, jobs, union
184 Comments

Fairness at work demanded

Posted by Carol Beaumont on October 20th, 2010

DSC02890 (4) (2)Along with Green MP Keith Locke I attended the CTU rally in Auckland today.  7,000 wage and salary earners gathered in Manukau to express their anger and concern at the actions of this National government.  They were part of actions in 30 locations throughout New Zealand with 22,000 people participating.

The Auckland rally was a very powerful gathering. Strong statements were made against the removal of rights – the right to challenge unfair dismissals, the right to see your union representative on site, the right to rest and meal breaks, the right to have holidays.

At the end I was asked by a journalist whether I thought the Government would listen.   I responded that while they should listen I expected that they would not.  This Government is going to force through this backward looking suite of attacks on working people.  These changes will not lift workplace productivity, lift wages or close the wage gap with Australia – quite the contrary!  We will all be worse off as a consequence.

The speakers today reflected concerns that I am hearing throughout the community.   These attacks are not well received in the community and for many this is further evidence of a Government out of touch with the views and reality of many New Zealanders.

Filed under: labour, protest, union, workers rights
40 Comments

« Older Entries