NZ urgently needs a Hospo Union – Unite can be that!

The mighty Unite Union is examining using the Fair Pay Agreements to start building a Hospo Union.

Hospo, which has a terrible reputation for abuse, desperately needs unionisation to protect workers, build better work conditions and push up wages.

Fair Pay Agreements allow whoever can sign up 1000 workers first to negotiate with the sector.

For too long we haven’t had professional Unions protecting workers in Hospo, Unite could be that professional Union.

What is most fascinating however is the sudden realisation by the Unions what the FPA could actually do.

Most Unions are very self involved and simply dependent on Public Sector workers immediately joining, Unite has always had to work to recruit workers in Fast Food because the turn over is so high.

If FPAs are legalised, then there will be a gold rush in Union recruitment to gain the most market share.

This is going to be interesting.

Back in the good old days before the Individual Contracts Act, Unions often clashed over who could claim turf wars.

These days, it’s mostly the Professional Managerial Class in Wellington who run the union movement and they are all far too young to remember those wars, what the FPAs open things up to is a mad scramble for dominance of various sectors.

Unite Union are firing the first shots that they intend to be serious players in the new FPA world.

All power to their arm. This will be the new political battleground and whoever gets dominate first, gets to make the rules.

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