201620M&C Workers News

ISSN 0113-9339 Number 107 March 2016

201620M&C Workers News JOURNAL OF THE MANUFACTURING & CONSTRUCTION WORKERS UNION

Trade union principles will stop history repeating Important negotiations are taking place now wages and a living wage, to end poverty in that will help decide the future of employment working households, is suggested, along with in public transport. promoting the trade union principles required As reported on page 4 negotiations for the NZ to make that happen. Bus collective agreements in the Wellington region are taking place against the background of changes for tendering for the work by pri- vate companies. In Auckland the first tenders saw the work going to the cheapest tenderers who paid the lowest wages. Competition for work drives down wages. It happened in 1990, and it will happen again unless workers combine to stop it. Competi- tion in the labour market is the root cause of poverty in working families. The lack of trade union principles is the greatest impediment to combatting poverty. On pages 8 and 9 the impact of poverty on our children is outlined. A campaign to reintro- Go Wellington lockout 2008: by staying united the duce service pay as a bridge between poverty union achieved a wage boost with no clawbacks Also in this issue... Health & saftey... page 10 From the workfront... A huge gap between the safety perceptions of em- pages 2 - 3 ployers and workers in manufacturing is revealed The Union settles a dispute over an unjust dismissal at Viridian Glass regarding accusations of International News... bulling. pages 14 - 15 Collective agreement A new global framework agreement helps in negotiations... pages 4 - 7 union recognitions disputes. NZ Bus negotiations grapple with the impact of a new tendering system which portends a return to Industriall resolution on the wage cutting of the 1990s. TPPA... page 16 PAGE 2 M&C WORKERS NEWS

Urgent compliance order against NZ Post for failure to consult The Postal Workers Union gree of skills required. are confidential and not to be dis- (PWU) has sought an ur- Nevertheless, without consulta- cussed with affected members. In gent compliance order in tion, NZ Post purchased the Pax- the PWA’s opinion this breached ters which will lead to a change in the CEA. the Employment Relations the operation of the postal delivery Authority (ERA) regarding service as posties would no longer COMPLIANCE NZ Post failure to consult walk, cycle or motorcycle. It will ORDER with the PWU regarding also impact rosters. Working days Therefore the PWU sought a com- the use of Paxter vehicles. will become fewer but longer pliance order in the ERA that NZ While NZ Post has been conduct- Post properly consult affected ing confidential meetings with a SECRECY members. Members felt that in ad- small group of union officials (the Prior to the introduction of the dition to changes to the way work Delivery Working Group and Net- Paxters NZ Post had merely met is done, there are a number of safe- work Working Group) the posties with several union official to dis- ty issues such as heavier steering directly affected by NZ Post’s in- cuss the introduction of the Pax- and longer reach for breaks.Also troduction of the Paxters and cor- ters. The officials were advised there are issues on the Paxter be- responding changed rosters have that all discussions about the issue ing too large for use on footpaths. not been consulted.

BREACH OF CEA The collective employment agreement (CEA) requires that NZ Post consult with the PWU. In particular NZ Post management promise to consult directly with people who are affected by proposed changes. This includes circumstances where a piece of technology is introduced that sig- Small vehicle causing big issues - PWU and NZ Post are at odds about nificantly alters the nature and de- the safety and effectiveness of the new Paxter vechicles. M&C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 3 From the work front...

Dispute with Viridian Glass over unjust dismissal settled The Union settled member Wayne Brassington’s unjust dismissal from Vir- idian Glass at mediation, which highlights many things employers do wrong when dealing with accusations of bullying. How should an employer deal with accusations of workplace bullying and abusive behaviour? On the Viridian’s actions in dismissing Wayne were far from trasnparent and one hand, it is a serious issue that clearly were both unfair and unreasonable. should be dealt with quickly but events. Instead they continuously of behaviour or a single incident. on the other hand, it is easily made interrupted him with their opinion The employer had gone back and accusation that requires at least on the matter. forth on which one it was. some investigation by the employer. In the Wayne’s case, the com- Use of expired warnings pany did almost everything wrong. TARGET ON HIS The employers version of events BACK that it repeatedly insisted on was You certainly cannot be forgiven HOW NOT TO DEAL that this was simply a continuation WITH A COMPLAINT for suggesting that the employer of previous disciplinary matters. was out to get Wayne. The way OF BULLYING Yet many of these had never been it came out at him suggested that When a complaint was made raised with Wayne. Regardless all the employer wanted to end the against Wayne, his employer re- the warnings given had expired. employment relationship. In fact, sponded by simply accepting it was evident during the dismiss- the complaint as true and that it Summary execution al that any further complaints amounted to bullying. It then fol- After a very brief meeting the em- after July 2014 would be treat- lowed that by inviting Wayne to a ployer adjourned for only 15 - 20 ed as serious misconduct. This disciplinary meeting. min before coming back with a demonstrates how the employer preliminary decision to dismiss did not understand that they have No explanation of wrongdoing Wayne. This further showed a lack carry out an investigation into At the meeting Viridian made a proper consideration and investi- complaints and not merely pre- number of mistakes. First it nev- gation into the claims. It was not dispose themselves to a particular er raised with Wayne what about enough time to make a decision outcome. his one exchange with the com- with such serious consequences. plainant constituted bullying. This SETTLED AT limited Wayne’s ability to respond. No clear reason for dismissal MEDIATION At the final decision to dismiss The Union was able to file a dis- Limited ability to respond the employer refused to consider pute in the Employment Relations It may not have mattered that alternatives to dismissal. It mere- Authority and get the matter Wayne was not told what was ly reiterated its belief that Wayne referred to mediation. Wayne and bullying because the employer re- was abusive. It was however not Viridian then settled the matter to fused to let him tell his side of the made clear whether it was pattern Wayne’s satisfaction. PAGE 4 M & C WORKERS NEWS Collective agreement negotiations...

Bus negotiations set scene for bargaining under competitive tendering Regional negotiations for NZ Bus subsidiaries were conducted during Febru- ary. As M&C Workers News goes to print the employer has made an offer that will be reported on to an all up membership meeting. While there are three separate agreements, for Go Wellington, Valley Flyer and Runcimans, they are all negotiated jointly as part of the unions’ attempt to move to- wards standard wages and condi- The Wellington Regional Council’s decision to scrap trolleys has tions. undermined the advantage for tendering for work that Go Wellington formerly had creating certain loss of work in the tendering process that TENDERING commences in April 2016. This year the bargaining took place in the context of a new round erating a public passenger service in Wellington, bus drivers took of tendering for public passenger is wages. Competitive tendering a drop in wages of nearly $2 per work. In Auckland this new round tends to favour the operator that hour while electing to retain all has already seen NZ Bus lose work pays the lowest wages. penal rates. Since then the union to other operators who have under- In 1991, the last time serious cut NZ Bus. Half of the cost of op- competitive tendering took place Continued opposite on page 5 Settlement of flat rate issue proposed An important issue in the ing the whole week and any time enough workers working 7 days a Workshops section of the a bus operated. Their hours could week if required, at any time. This Go Wellington CEA was the be changed permanently on 5 days would eliminate all overtime and notice. weekend work thereby cutting the flat rate. company’s wage bill. The compa- The company had created a flat $250,000 ON WAGE ny’s failure to get more than 4 to rate for 4 former union members. accept such hours of work arrange- The company had insisted, un- BILL When the rates agreed by those ments has meant that its wage bill truthfully, to do this they could would blow out if their flat rate not be union members. In return 4 were applied to shift workers (the majority of staff and who all were applied to all workshop staff for a higher wage rate they gave up with the existing hours of work in many conditions and penal rates remain with the union) the potential flat rate added $250,000 to the CEA. contained in the CEA. In return for a more modest flat Those who created this flat rate the company’s wage bill. This was according to the company in CEA rate the union offered to write in agreement had been day workers. protection for members concern- In return for their flat rate they negotiations. agreed to be shift workers cover- The plan behind the flat rate on Continued on page 6 the company’s side was to have M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 5 has successfully recovered the in effect agreeing not to compete However, most union claims add- lost wages and the penal rates and based on wages rates. The unions ed cost, and being the highest pay- control of work life balance is the will ensure that any potential op- er NZ Bus did not want to add to envy of all other drivers. erator who bids for work in Wel- its wage bill by improving condi- The offers made by NZ Bus re- lington know that they will face tions. flected this environment in which claims to match the prevailing in- they expect, as the highest payer, dustry wage rates and conditions. EXTRA WEEKS LEAVE to lose work to competitors. The Wellington Regional Coun- CLAIM The wages offered ranged between cil before the CEA bargaining An effort was made to get Val- 1.3% per year for a three year term, was completed was alerted to this ley Flyer and Runcimans up to 5 or 1.9% for a one year term. union stance. weeks annual leave after two years Some important minor conditions service, in line with Go Welling- 18 MONTH TERM were also agreed in the negotia- ton. The unions proposed a low- The unions opted for an 18 month tions. The improvements included er wage increase across all three term with the wages and allowanc- no split shifts on weekends. This companies to share the cost of the es increased twice during the term. is the current practice in Welling- extra holidays. It was important to The term agreed will see the CEAs ton but was not excluded by the the unions to try and lock in an ex- expire by July 2017. This is short- CEA. At Valley Flyer this meant tra weeks holiday at NZ Bus to try ly before any new operators start the elimination of split weekend and make this a prevailing indus- their services. The unions’ objec- shifts. try standard in 2018. tive is to see the next round of ne- The company would not accept gotiations for the entire Wellington 7 DAYS such a proposal still requiring a region take place at the same time. Applications for annual leave lower wage rise at Valley Flyer To assist in the next round of bar- must now be responded to within and Runcimans for this change.. gaining a priority was put by the 7 days. Such issues will be on the table in union on a subsequent parties pro- A higher duties allowance was 2018 when all the new operators vision. This provision means that agreed for Shiftmen who now have started and, hopefully, are any new operator can join the NZ have responsibility for closing up involved with the unions in CEA Bus collective agreements thereby the premises in Wellington. bargaining. NZ Van Lines fails to negotiate in good faith Negotiations with NZ Van for performance is 75 cents per the bargaining in a timely manner Lines were meant to be hour (this is included in the $19 and a defence of not being able to completed by early Febru- and $24.75 quoted above). do so because of work commit- ary The company, howev- There are definitions for each of ments isn’t a valid legal reason to er, continues to fail to meet the 4 grades proposed. continue to delay the finalisation agreed deadlines. The company has been told “you of the process.” As we go to print have a legal obligation to conclude there has been no reply. The unions (First and M&C) put an amended position to the company in January. This proposed the introduction of service pay and 4 work grades. The bottom grade would have a top potential pay rate of $19 per hour after 10 years service. For the highest Grade the 10 year rate would be $24.75. The new proposed pay system would have a review of perfor- NZ Van Lines: The company has failed to deliver on time in CEA nego- mance to determine if a performance extra was added. The extra tiations PAGE 6 M & C WORKERS NEWS Unions combine for negotiations Negotiations for the NZ has negotiated separately rejecting mail delivery and the use of elec- Post collective agreement the attempts of the Postal Workers tric vehicles is supported by the started off on 25 Febru- Union of Aotearoa to forge a com- union. But the company has failed bined union bargaining unit. to carry out its obligation to con- ary with a discussion over sult with employees about the new the bargaining process ar- NEGOTIATIONS system. rangement. Negotiations PIVOTAL The PWUA believes that the vehi- are set down for 8 days cle chosen by Post for the job, the This time round the negotiations Paxter, cannot be used safely in during March. are pivotal for the future. The These negotiations will be the New Zealand if the current work company has a huge log of claims processes are also employed. first in over 20 years to combine aimed at whittling away long es- the unions. Previously the EPMU The company wants to buy fewer tablished conditions and in- vehicles by increasing the hours of troducing a new integrated work to a 4 day 9 hour roster. Such delivery system for both mail a roster when coupled with 6 day and parcels. delivery and unlimited compul- The integrated delivery sys- sory overtime also demanded by tem will see mail and residen- Post is unsafe. tial parcels delivered by elec- The new vehicles also are unsafe tric vehicles. There are huge for direct transfer from the vehi- issues attached to this concept cle of mail to the delivery point. which is being trialled in New Experience in New Plymouth is Plymouth. that this will result in occupational The combining of parcel and overuse hazards. SETTLEMENT OF FLAT RATE ISSUE PROPOSED went as far as to say that a number every meeting and had voted in Continued from page 4 of union members were lazy. favour of the union’s stance by se- ing hours of work and shifts. This Some claimed not to understand cret ballot. proposal is that the CEA hours how the union worked, even Yet others said the union had done of work and shift work provision thought they had previously put “nothing” for them. Former Union must apply to all employees. This forward claims that members had General Secretary was able to re- recognises that a change to one been locked out supporting. Oth- ply to these claims and could point employee’s hours or shift status ers said the union was not demo- out what the union had done for can affect the remuneration of oth- cratic, even though they attended each of the individuals concerned. ers. The whole issue arising from the company negotiating flat rates was put before the Employment Relations Authority. A decision is pending.

DESERVE MORE At the ERA hearing the company produced the four who had left the union to give evidence on the company’s behalf. They told the ERA that they deserved a higher wage rate than others employed by Go Wellington as they were better, more productive workers. One M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 7 When employers overpay In light of Bunnings cannot repay it in one lump requests for recovery of an sum. overpayment to member Aaron Slight we DEDUCTIONS look at what employers PROHIBITED could do when they What about overpayments out- discover overpayments. side these periods? In these circumstances, the issue becomes It remains a common scenario more complex. The employer even with today’s complex pay- has only one realistic option, roll systems; an employer pays an which is to begin an action for employee more than they had to. recovery of payment made un- Or as we saw last issue with Tra- der mistake of law. This allows zit, an employer disputes what it a the Employment Relations has to pay an employee. Natural- Authority or a Court to force Air New Zealand famously ignored an ly, the employer will not just write the employee to payback the employees queries about his pay and this off but will seek to recover the employer. in the end couldn’t recover over 40K in overpayment from the employee. However, there is a big excep- overpayments. tion to this law. DEDUCTING AN that Bunnings will be able to re- EMPLOYEES WAGES cover the overpayment. Although Usually there will be a deduc- FAIRNESS DEFENCE If the employee received the mon- these issues are ultimately a mat- tion provision in the employment ter of fact decided by the ERA. agreement that allows for the re- ey in good faith and has altered covery of the overpayment. It is his position based on the payment not a universal practice for em- being valid then the employer may COST ployers to put these into agree- be out of luck. Generally, the ERA/ EFFECTIVENESS ments so in cases of overpayment Court will look for what is the fair Aaron’s situation does raise an- it is best to check the agreement outcome in the situation. other point. If the overpayment is for a deduction provision. It may be if an employer makes suffi ciently small, it may not be That said, the Employer needs no a simple mistake and is quick cost-effective for an employer to provision when overpayments re- to notify the employee then it is recover the payment. Most em- late to periods of: unauthorised going to be very easy to recover ployers use lawyers and the cost absence, strike, lockout, or sus- the money. In contrast, if the em- of seeking advice, fi ling a case in pension. However, in these cir- ployer does nothing (or continues the authority, attending mediation cumstances, the overpayment to make overpayments) then it is and an investigation meeting will must be reasonably unavoidable, going to be unfair to make an em- likely outweigh a small overpay- proper notice is required, and the ployee pay back the overpayments ment. employer has to recover the mon- because (among other things) the ey within two months. It is rare employee has probably already UNION SUPPORT that this circumstance arises. spent the money. HELPFUL More common is the scenario As always its best for employees where an employer is overpaying AARON’S CASE to have a union on their side as regular wages by a small amount To return to Aaron’s case he is a employers may simply just intim- each payday. This causes the most former employee whose last wage idate employees with debt collec- grievance because it can be more was overpaid. Even if he was still tors to recover the money. If you diffi cult to detect and by the time an employee, his contract did not pay back an overpayment that you its noticed the total amount over- contain a deduction provision. His didn’t legally have to then you paid may be large and the employ- employer, Bunnings did not notify are out of luck. So it is best to be er may be desperate to recover the him straight away and he spent the certain before you repay your em- amount while the employee likely money. This means it is less likely ployer. PAGE 8 M & C WORKERS NEWS Higher wages cures poverty - service pay can bridge the gap Many jobs organised by the union enjoy high jobs were deunionised service pay disappeared, and the promise of rates of pay, some of the highest for workers in payment for performance was sel- manufacturing and construction in New Zealand. dom kept. But other jobs, especially those that are newer to One practical collective agreement negotiation claim to reduce pover- union membership, have low rates of pay. ty is the reintroduction of service The union has supported the living minimum wage from say $17.50 pay - an automatic pay rise when wage campaign. This campaign to $19.25 is asking for a 10% pay a period of time has been served. has set the objective of a mini- rise. mum wage of $19.25 per hour. When was the last time any union AFFORDABLE A significant proportion of union got a 10% wage increase?! Point- During service if a worker starts members are paid less than this ing out the effect of poverty on our a family their income needs will amount. There are constraints on families doesn’t get a result. grow hugely. Service pay is a getting those on the lowest rates mechanism that does not discrim- paid more when it comes time to SERVICE PAY inate that helps meets such needs. negotiate the collective agreement. One of the greatest contributors to Because it is paid to only those Employers often argue that if they poverty wages long term has been who have served the time it is pay the minimum living wage and an incessant employer campaign more likely to be affordable in the their competitors - be they in New against service pay. context of a small general wage Zealand or overseas - do not, they Service pay was very common in rise. will lose business and this in turn the 1980s. But the Employment Recent studies around the world will cut the numbers of jobs. Contracts Act in 1990 ushered in and in New Zealand have looked with it an employer campaign to at how to reduce poverty, partic- COMPETITION get rid of service pay. ularly of children. These studies UNDERMINES Employers said “we don’t think have found that the problem of This employer argument can be we should pay money just for poverty is fixed by giving - par defeated if every job performing serving time.” “Workers who per- ents more money. The experience the work is unionised. This is how- form should get a wage rise”. As where this has happened is that ever is long term task as New Zea- overwhelmingly land law makes organising new parents spend their jobs into the union difficult. income boost on This economic reality has meant helping their kids that many New Zealand working get a better start in families live in poverty. Poverty is life. generally considered to be a wage While we can’t to support a family that is less than effect a change 60% of the average wage. The av- to the incomes erage wage is nearly $30 an hour of beneficiaries putting poverty at the level of $18 without changing per hour. governments, we Such low wages affect house- can change the holds with children in particular. incomes of union 100,000 children living in poverty members. On jobs in New Zealand are in households where wages rates where at least one adult is in full are low a service time work. pay rise is a must When bargaining for a collective for the next nego- agreement a claim to shift the Performance pay at work tiations. M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 9 Union principles can reverse poverty Competition for work in the la- to understand them. Unfortu- gaining unit. When workers ne- bour market drives down wag- nately many didn’t and this has gotiate wages with an employer es. This fact has played out for worked to cut wages and condi- it needs to be with a single voice. workers since 1990 when the tions to our detriment. With one voice representing rules around union membership The union principles which are the interests of all workers on were changed by the Employ- basic to stemming and reversing the job it is easier to get a bet- ment Contracts Act. poverty in New Zealand are ter deal. If only half the workers Prior to 1990 union principles • monopoly, and belong to the union, the deal for were enshrined in law, mean- • solidarity. everyone, union and non union, ing that workers did not have Monopoly means a single bar- will be worse. The second principle is solidarity. This means workers supporting each other in wage bargaining. Proposals to cut wages or conditions in one area to find someone else’s increase must be opposed. Such proposals often take the form of “grandpar- enting”. The effect is that new workers get lesser wages and or conditions than current ones Union members picket Mana Bus against employer CEA proposals to and will quickly undermine the remove service entitlements. union’s monopoly. POVERTY A PROBLEM FOR OUR KIDS Poverty in New Zealand has looking at education, reached alarming levels, not deprivation, suicide seen since the Great Depres- and infant mortality sion of the 1930s. rates. The two coun- Poor housing and overcrowd- tries ranked below ing to pay landlords rent de- New Zealand were mands, or high mortgages, Mexico and Turkey. affect many working families. Housing costs are di- This has a bad effect on health. verting household in- For example in 2010 over come from food and 20,000 children from low in- clothing. The result come families were admitted is kids turning up at to hospital for respiratory school without shoes illnesses and serious skin in- and with no lunch, and fections attributable to poor no raincoat in winter. housing and overcrowding. Instead of permitting Easily preventable diseases the organising of the bargain- most likely to raise their fami- are getting to the hospital- ing power of workers through lies in poverty. Even if they do isation stage because parents unions to fix this problem the succeed financially children can’t afford doctor’s visits. government makes it more diffi- from poor families are more New Zealand is ranked 28th cult with its law changes. Their likely to die younger because out of 30 OECD (developed) solution is charity. of their upbringing as chil- countries for child outcomes Children raised in poverty are dren in poverty. PAGE 10 M & C WORKERS NEWS Health & safety... Gap between workers and employers safety perceptions Worksafe New Zealand has 2008 and 2014, an average of 5 a done, working too long without a classified manufacturing as year. break - are all easily avoidable. a high risk sector for work- Machinery and tool use was a ma- Over half of workers reported in jor factor in severe and fatal ac- the survey said from “time to time place health and safety. cidents between 2008 and 2014, or a lot” they are working when The general perception that man- contributing to a quarter of severe unfit for work, and working under ufacturing industry is safe to work injuries and fatalities. pressure to get the job done. in is widespread. It is also wrong. Vehicles (forklifts and trucks) and Ironically, the least significant Worksafe has been running work- falling objects were the other two risky behaviour was working shops to develop a strategy for main causes of fatal accidents in when hung over or stoned. 20% improving job safety in manufac- manufacturing. of workers say this happens from turing. Worksafe has surveyed both work- time to time or a lot. This is of- 137 DEATHS IN 2010 ers and employers to find out the ten the area of greatest employer perceptions of risky behaviour in effort on health and safety even At these workshops it was revealed the workplace. The main result of though only 6% of them thought that exposure to dusts, welding the survey was that workers felt it was an intermittent or frequent fumes and other airborne sub- risky behaviour occurred far more risky behaviour. stances including asbestos caused frequently than employers did. Most severe injuries (requiring an estimated 137 deaths and 850 more than one week off work) are hospitalisations in 2010. Most of to the back, spine and shoulder. these deaths and hospitalisations RISKY BEHAVIOURS This indicates that manual han- were of workers who had ceased AVOIDABLE dling is a big factor in many seri- working in manufacturing. Most risky behaviours - working ous injuries. There were 38 fatal accidents of when overtired, sick or injured, workers currently engaged in the taking short cuts to save time and COLLECTIVE manufacturing sector between being under pressure to get the job AGREEMENT FIXES The collective agreements negotiated by the union are able to provide fixes for most of the risky behaviours iden- tified, and to provide for safe work procedures. Then ensuring a safe workplace becomes a matter of enforcement of the legally binding agreement. Of paramount importance is eliminating working when overtired. This is accom- plished by adequate sick leave, adequate breaks between shifts, controls on the amount of overtime, and adequate rest breaks during the day. Unsafe manual handling prac- tices should also be a priority for attention. M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 11 City Care staff in Wellington City without their own facilities

The ongoing dispute about Care undertook to clean the area. no obligation to provide staff with providing Wellington city It should be noted that Arlington their own space. A mediation was based maintenance staff was owned by the Wellington held which resulted in the Union City Council. approaching the Council for a with proper facilities went solution.. As a result a second to its second mediation and ARLINGTON IN mediation was scheduled. may now have to go before DISREPAIR the Employment Relations City Care failed to carry out the HEALTH AND Authority (ERA). work. The actual space itself was SAFETY ISSUE The issue of employers failing to in a poor state. Initially the toilet Regardless of the collective provide facilities does not arise too was not separated from the area. agreement, the Union maintains often. As bad, as some employers Then the communications area that requiring Staff to eat in their can be they generally recognise was shifted to another room that vehicles is a health and safety is- the need to give employees their was awash with bathwater and sue as places where work is done own space to take breaks, eat, etc. only a cold water basis was in- cannot also be used as places for However, where the employer has stalled. In addition there was only staff to eat. City Care disputes a large amount of mobile staff, this 1 lock for both spaces and the key this saying that it is acceptable issue becomes trickier. was provided only to the facility for staff to eat in the front of their maintenance staff. STAFF WITHOUT vehicles. FACILITIES PROCEEDINGS FILED Although City Care operates Without a satisfactory resolution ISSUE UNRESOLVED throughout the greater Welling- the decision was made to file pro- At the second mediation, it was ton Region its main facility is in ceedings in the ERA for breach apparent that neither side had Seaview outside of Wellington of the collective agreement which changed their position. As the mat- City. requires City Care to have prop- ter relates to interpretation of the For staff that work in the regions er facilities at all its depots. The collective agreement and terms of surrounding the city it is generally Union’s claim is that by organis- settlement, the matter was unre- fine for them to use that depot for ing work from Arlington they are solved. their meals, breaks and to wash up. creating a depot. City Care nev- Currently the Union is consulting However, Wellington City based ertheless maintained that it was with members on whether to staff are far from the depot. De- compliant and that it was under pursue further action in the ERA. pending on traffic it could be 30 min each way to take a break. Clearly that is impractical for both the employee and employer. During the second most recent collective agreement negotiations a solution was sought. ARLINGTON APARTMENTS City Care agreed in the terms of settlement to use part of the Ar- lington Apartments to provide at least some (albeit small) space for City Care wants Wellington City staff to use their vehicles to eat and Wellington City staff. At the time, take breaks rather than provide them a depot that staff can reasonably the place was not clean and City access. PAGE 12 M & C WORKERS NEWS 2015 NATIONAL ANNUAL CONFERENCE The 2016 National Annual Conference of the union will be held at the Trades Hall 126 Vivian Street Wellington commencing at 3 May 1.00pm 2016.

AGENDA • Minutes of the 2015 National Annual Conference • Matters arising • General Secretary’s report • Trades Hall annual report • Remits • Elections of Officers • General Business

REMITS Any Branch, Industry Council, Union or member may submit remits for consideration by the National Conference. Remits should be sent to the General Secretary, M & C Workers Union, P O Box 6287 Wellington.

ELECTIONS OF OFFICERS Nominations are called for the following positions • President • Vice President • General Secretary • Trustees (two) • Accountant

Nominations may be in writing and signed by a mover and seconder who shall be financial union members, and signed by the nominee. Nominations should be sent to the Returning Officer at the above address so as to be received no later than 27 April 2016. Alternatively nominations may be made from the floor of the conference prior to the election.

George Larkins GENERAL SECRETARY M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 13 NZ Post denies Postal Workers Union official access to Naiper and Hastings delivery branches NZ Post unlawfully de- consent where nied Postal Workers Union it was reason- (PWU) Southern president able that the union official John Maynard entry into would not com- the Napier and Hastings de- ply with health livery branches. and safety pro- This past December saw yet an- cedures. other instance of an employer de- In John’s case, nying a Union official access to the Union also a workplace. Employers remain has a mediat- woefully ignorant of a union offi- ed settlement cial right to access a workplace. that covers the With collective bargainning on the horizon, NZ Post Wellington re- has denied a PWU official access to its Naiper and Union access to gion that details Hastings delivery branches without proper legal right. workplaces some specific processes that must by the PWU. Clearly, despite their The law is clear on a union offi- be followed regarding requesting claims NZ Post does not under- cial’s right to access a workplace. consent to enter a NZ Post deliv- stand the rules for Union access As long as the official obtains con- ery branch. sent to enter and meets all the con- Although John went beyond what No written explana- ditions of entry there are only two he was required to do NZ Post still tion reasons they can be denied access denied him access. Nothing was said about NZ Post’s to a workplace. failure to provide a written expla- Reasons for denial of nation within 1 working day for Conditions of entry access why John was denied access to a The conditions of entry are that the Putting aside issues of merely workplace. The failure to give a official is actually there on union wanting to frustrate the Union, written response is a point many business and that they access the NZ Post’s reasoning for why it employers miss and it ends up workplace at a reasonable time denied John access to both Napi- costing them. and in a way that complies with er and Hastings delivery branches workplace health and safety pro- changed between when it denied Further denial of cedures. They must also show ID him access and when it was re- access when requested. quired to respond to proceedings After the initial denial of ac- filed in the Employment Relations cess and proceedings filed in Denying access Authority (ERA). the ERA, NZ Post again denied If these conditions are met then When NZ Post was preventing John and another representative generally, only the security and access, its primary claim was that George Larkins access to the defence of New Zealand or the John was absent without leave same branches. Interestingly they prevention and detection of of- from his job with NZ Post. This is later claimed it was a mistake to fences can prevent access to the less relevant to the issue as John deny George access which raises workplace. The one exception for was there on behalf of the PWU. significant problems for NZ Post this applies to some employers However, in response to the when trying to answer why John based on religion reasons. PWU’s proceedings it changed its was not allowed access. Of course, the official must obtain claim to breach of “a reminder of As a result the matter is now the employer’s consent; howev- agreed protocols” for Union ac- headed to mediation despite NZ er, the reality is that generally the cess. Unfortunately what NZ Post Post being disappointed by the employer could only withhold its has produced was not agreed to proposition. PAGE 14 M & C WORKERS NEWS International news... Global agreement quick to aid union recognition A global framework agree- long strike. The ment (GFA) signed between Confederation IndustriALL Global Union of Trade Unions in Myanmar and Swedish clothing com- (CTUM) report- pany H&M has helped to ed the dispute to reinstate sacked workers at IndustriALL’s garment factories in both South East Asia Myanmar and Pakistan regional office, which invoked just a couple of months af- Signing of the H&M global framework agreement ter it came into force. the GFA with H&M who pushed for dialogue In November 2015, 88 workers The GFA, which was signed in through both their local office in at the Denim Clothing Compa- November 2015, serves to protect Yangon and Jiale Fashion’s own- ny (DCC) factory in Pakistan the labour rights of 1.6 million ers in Hong Kong. were sacked for demanding their workers in H&M’s global supply As well as reinstating the dismissed rights. The dispute began when chain. workers, the factory agreed to rec- five worker representatives were ognize the factory trade union. sacked on the spot for asking to STRIKE OVER IndustriALL textile director Chris- discuss issues such as a lack of so- DISMISSALS tina Hajagos-Clausen said: cial security, insurance, and sala- In Myanmar, the GFA was key “The GFA is founded upon a ries below the minimum wage that to getting trade unionists back to shared belief that well-structured often were paid late. When 83 of work, as well as achieving trade industrial relations are essential to their colleagues stood up for them, union recognition at the Jiale a stable and sustainable production they also lost their jobs. Fashion factory in Yangon. model. This type of collaboration Eight union leaders were sacked is crucial for lasting improvements ALL REINSTATED at the garment factory in Octo- for the garment workers in H&M’s As part of the newly signed GFA ber 2015, leading to a month- supply chain.” with H&M, both parties worked to bring the 88 workers back to work through joint negotiations with IndustriALL Pakistani affiliate NTUF and the local management at Denim Clothing. All workers were reinstated with full pay from 26 November, the date they had been fired. Abdul Jabbar, one of the affected workers, said: “This shows us the power of workers coming together and the strength of international solidarity to resolve crises. It not only gave us great courage, but did the same for other workers in the factory, as well as workers in other factories in the area.” M & C WORKERS NEWS PAGE 15 Bangladesh breaches “It’s the same trade agreement the whole world The EU must do more to “We believe the EU has both the responsibility and the capacity to over...” protect Bagladesh garment Global union federation In- workers by ensuring the infl uence the situation in Bangla- desh through its trade preferences dustriall made an offi cial country’s government com- and it should be doing more to use complaint to the Interna- plies with the rules of its its power and leverage to secure tional Labour Organisation trade agreement with the meaningful and immediate im- about Thailand for its failure EU. provements.” to protect union and work- This was the fi nding of a recent The evaluation noted a worrying er rights. As a result of this evaluation by global unions UNI rise in anti-union discrimination complaint Thailand’s pref- and IndustriALL and found the Bangladeshi gov- erential trade access to Eu- ernment to be either directly or rope was stopped on 1 Jan- uary 2015. The US central COMPACT FAILED SO indirectly responsible for a series of serious labour violation in clear union AFL-CIO has sought FAR the ending of Thailand’s The Sustainability Compact – breach of ILO standards incorpo- rated in the trade arrangement. preferential access to the US agreed by the EU and the Ban- market for failing to meet- gladesh following the Rana Plaza GLOBAL UNION ing worker rights.The US factory collapse of 2013 – was Congress will conside this in designed to address concerns over CONCERNS 2016. labour conditions in the Asian Among the concerns raised by the global unions are: country. But, despite pledges it ASSASSINATION made at the time, the Bangladeshi • More than a 100 cases of an- government has so far failed to ti-union discrimination in fac- FAILS implement any lasting improve- tories where new trade unions Three hitmen failed in an ments. have been registered. assassination attempt on “The government of Bangladesh • A failure by the government to Somali union leader Omar has failed to take meaningful steps guarantee freedom of associa- Faruk who has been threat- to implement the changes it agreed tion. ened for attempting to build to as part of the Sustainability • An inability of many workers and independent union. The Compact” said UNI Deputy Gen- to organise and form unions union said “no amount of eral Secretary Christy Hoffman. without retaliation. attacks and attempts on the lives of our leaders will stop us from fulfi lling our historic mission, which is to liberate workers from exploitation, oppression and subjuga- tion”.

MARCH AGAINST TRADE UNIONIST TRIAL An estimated 5000 people march in Spain against a trial of 8 trade unionists each facing 8 years in jai for going on strike against Airbus. Over a thousand workers died in the Rana fi re and factory collapse PAGE 16 M & C WORKERS NEWS IndustriALL Resolution on the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement Submitted to the Executive Committee by the North American Region The Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPPA) was signed on 5 October 2015 by twelve countries: Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the USA, and Vietnam. If ratified, it would cover 40% of the world’s economy and set the foundation for trade and investment conditions that will have a profound impact throughout the economy and society of the nations concerned. The TPPA was negotiated behind closed doors away from democratic scrutiny, allowing powerful corporate lobbies to advance their agenda without being subject to authentic and rigorous democratic procedures. National Parliaments have been sidelined. IndustriALL, along with other Global Unions, human rights groups, environmental groups and public advocacy organizations, believes that the TPPA as negotiated potentially threatens democracy, public regulation, labour rights, public health, and environmental protection. Our specific concerns are as follows: The controversial Investor State Dispute Settlement (ISDS) mechanism is at the heart of the TPPA. ISDS undermines national sovereignty by empowering secret legal panels to challenge the social and environmental legislation of member states, reverse domestic policies, and impose heavy financial penalties on governments. ISDS shifts the rules of the global economy in favor of corporations and against workers. The TPPA Labour Chapter references the ILO Declaration of Principles but falls short of requiring member states to comply with fundamental worker rights as defined in the core Conventions and inter- preted by the ILO supervisory bodies, raising serious questions about its enforceability. The potential negative impact on employment has not been taken into account. The TPPA will put pressure on the global labour market through increased competition. It will lead to further restructur- ing, outsourcing and subcontracting, hence raising concerns on job security, terms and conditions of employment and achieving a living wage. The environment chapter is weak and not enforceable. The TPPA does not mention climate change and would not allow governments to regulate on the basis of climate protection. The TPPA would actually undermine the implementation of the Sustainable Development Goals and COP21 decisions and jeop- ardize the implementation of the existing Multilateral Agreements on the Environment. The TPPA has far-reaching implications for the rules of the global economy. The EU is already saying that Europe should not be left behind and is pushing to speed up on-going talks on TTIP. The approval of TPPA would most certainly increase pressure to sign more trade agreements without due regard to workers' interests. For these reasons, IndustriALL opposes the TPPA in its current form. We call on our affiliated unions and their members to demand a public and democratic debate in the 12 countries concerned and to use their influence and power to mobilize public opinion.

Issue number 107 of “M & C Workers News” was prepared by the National Office of the Manufacturing & Construction Workers Union. The union may be contacted at PO Box 6287 Wellington New Zealand. Phone (04) 3858264, Fax (04) 3848007, email to [email protected] The articles published in M & C Workers News are not necessarily the same as the policies of the union