Legislative solutions needed to improve lot of insecure workers

Job insecurity is now so entrenched that only legislative changes will bring any real change for the hundreds of thousands of Kiwis who face the threat of it every day says Darien Fenton, Labour’s associate spokesperson for labour issues.

“A CTU report, released today confirms the reality for many workers.  They may have a job, but it is often casual, temporary or contracted, where a weekly pay check is uncertain, hours of work go up and down and long-held rights to breaks and paid holidays are meaningless.

“Employees have no stability and are often employed in low-wage industries. Many will have to hold multiple jobs to get by.

“Labour has proposed a number of legislative solutions in recent years, including bills that would have given protection to casual and temporary labour hire workers, minimum remuneration for dependent contractors, employment protections for young workers under 16, and minimum redundancy rights. 

“Rather than being open to ideas to address a rapidly changing labour market, the National government has voted down anything proposed by Labour, and instead adopted new employment laws that make the already vulnerable even more so.

“Having laws that provide better security don’t compromise good quality management, and we don’t buy into the usual employer nonsense of trade-offs with jobs.

“Labour is continuing to press for law changes, with a new member’s bill (attached) in the ballot in my name that would require individual and collective agreements to have specified hours and wages scales included.”

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