The NZ Union Movement’s blueprint for a better economy based on worker rights
At there recent conference, the NZCTU laid out a blueprint for a better economy based on worker rights…
Unions call on opposition parties to deliver worker priorities in first 100 days
The NZCTU Te Kauae Kaimahi is calling for public commitments from opposition parties to deliver Fair Pay Agreements, Automatic Union Membership, and contractor reform in the first 100 days of a new government.
With polling showing the election of a new government is a real prospect in 2026, unions are proposing A New Deal for Workers, a policy programme that political parties are expected to adopt if they want the support of working people.
“Over the past 35 years, attacks on labour rights and standards have suppressed wages, increased inequality, and left many New Zealanders working longer hours on lower pay and with less agency in the workplace,” said NZCTU President Richard Wagstaff.
“Since 2023, life is even harder for workers. The current Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety has wasted no time in dismantling workers’ rights. This Government is actively hostile to workers and their unions.
“A fundamental shift in employment relations policy is needed – an enduring framework that supports good work, high wages, and productivity,” said Wagstaff.
The NZCTU is prioritising three key employment relations priorities for the first 100 days.
Fair Pay Agreements
“The Government’s removal of Fair Pay Agreements has incentivised employers to compete on cost by driving down the terms and conditions of employment for workers, trapping entire industries in a low-wage spiral,” said Wagstaff.
“We need a mechanism to set minimum employment standards at the industry level. Fair Pay Agreements will ensure higher wages and better standards across low-wage industries.
Automatic Union Membership
“All newly employed workers whose job comes within the coverage of a collective agreement should be automatically covered by the collective and should automatically become members of the union, unless they opt out of doing so.
“Automatic Union Membership would protect workers from undue pressure from the employer regarding joining the union or accepting different conditions of employment.
Safeguarding the rights of employees and contractors
“Sham-contracting arrangements are being used to undercut wages and workers’ rights, and to force the cost of doing business onto workers. This is being encouraged by the Minister who is changing the law to suit the interests of multinational corporates like Uber.
“We must ensure that workers are not misclassified as contractors by clarifying in law how employees and contractors are defined. This will prevent employers from driving down conditions in precarious occupations, including in platform and gig economies.
“We are calling on political parties to deliver these policies as a matter of urgency. Anything less than full support will leave workers short of what they deserve,” said Wagstaff.
In the lead up to the election the NZCTU will release additional policies focused on equal pay, health and safety and reversing the ongoing attacks made by the current Government.
…it’s about bloody time.
The reason why we have stagnant wage growth is because the neoliberal experiment of NZ Inc robbed workers of collective bargaining and destroyed the Union movement…
…instead of lawfare to progress Worker rights, the Unions have had to learn that Mega Strikes are the only force left to them when facing a Right Wing Government this extreme.
That’s the reality Union Members and Union Leaders have had to comprehend when facing a Government led by ACT Party lunatics who have no interest in good faith relationships with Unions.
They are here to destroy Worker Rights, not protect them.
This Government represents a full scale attack on public services, and the Unions and their menbers need to understand that they are NOT on the streets simply demanding their interests, they are on the streets fighting for an egalitarian NZ whose infrastructure is built upon those well funded public services.
You are fighting for a NZ that stands for the many, not the few!
You are fighting for a NZ that is not led by right wing astro turf organisations!
You are fighting for a NZ beyond the thrall of corporations, speculators and polluters!
You are fighting for OUR NZ and you need to be ready to step up that battle in the election year because this fight IS political, cultural and economic!
The self serving right wing fantasy that Unions have to be apolitical must be challenged.
Simeon Brown, Judith Collins, Chris Luxon, Ryan Bridge, Duncan Garner and Erica Stanford all clutched at their Pearls last week crying out that the Unions were being political and that their mega strike put the union over their patients/students/vulnerable people.
It is such a bullshit self serving right wing fantasy that Unions have to be apolitical.
Look at the Federated Farmers, Taxpayers’ Union, Business NZ, NZ Initiative, Atlas Network, Campaign Company, Hobsons Pledge, Free Speech Union and Groundswell – THEY ARE ALL OVERWHELMINGLY POLITICAL, yet the Unions working together to criticise the appalling agenda of this Government that undermines all the egalitarian good the State Public Sector is supposed to represent, and suddenly its the end of Western Civilisation!
The Unions SHOULD be political, they SHOULD stand for values deeper than corporate profit margins or donors interests, they SHOULD proudly uphold the egalitarian foundations of this Nation, they SHOULD empower worker rights.
To pretend that they shouldn’t be political is a right wing fantasy and we shouldn’t indulge such blatant double standards.
It is time for the Unions to step up and be counted.
We need to focus on how to combat this terrible racist, anti-worker, anti-Treaty, anti-renter, anti-beneficiary, anti-environment Government who are selling out the common good for the interests of their donor friends.
We have to re-establish the egalitarian mission by promoting policy that directly challenges the capitalist status quo in meaningful ways.
Without vision, the Left is lost.
There are 4 magical pillars of the NZ economic ‘success’
1 – Stealing Indigenous land and never paying back the full value.
2 – Selling basic milk powder to China
3 – Selling each other houses and pretending that makes us rich.
4 – Addiction to a low wage economy.
The migration exploitation rules are garbage because NZ loves exploiting migrant labour!
We are addicted to it.
We say locals are too lazy for these jobs when really what we say is locals won’t allow themselves to be exploited as easily as migrant workers.
There is of course a solution here.
Universals Union membership for every migrant worker crossing the border.
That way domestic workers know they are not competing against exploited labour.
That way migrant labour can’t be exploited without the Union stepping.
That way the migrant worker and domestic worker are all protected by the solidarity of the Union.
We need economic resilience, we need community resilience, we need radical reform to strengthen sustainability.
We need more Left Universalism.
We need to lift the tax yoke off working people, beneficiaries and the middle classes and we need to put it on the Banks, the Corporations, the Billionaires and the mega wealthy.
We need more Democratic Infrastructure, not less!
Why do we need these things?
Because the climate is shutting down and we face a bleak future where Billions will suffer and die thanks to catastrophic climate change.
This change will be forced upon us whether we like it or not.
This demands more connections, more bonds that bind us together to emotionally, socially, economically and politically survive what is coming.
Māori communalism is going to teach us a lot.
Here are some thoughts on what the Union Movement should be considering:
The Right to Strike: A 10 day nation wide national strike would achieve more for working people than a dozen elections. We don’t have the right to strike in this country for God’s sakes, stand on your feet or live on your knees!
Iwi backed new Supermarket: Bring in a 3rd player into the supermarket duopoly that is Iwi backed with a focus on cheap prices for consumers, best prices for producers and high wages and work conditions for workers. Take 30% of the Supermarket Industry by force (allowed under the Commerce Commission powers) and use this as the backbone for a new food security system.
Mārae and RSA Civil Defence: Use Marae and RSA as the backbone of Civil Defence throughout NZ with resources based there alongside new building grants to strengthen those Marae.
Ministry of Green Works: We need to be able to build our own sustainable infrastructure, we need social housing builds and we need vast upgrading of the existing infrastructure to be adaptable to climate change.
100% renewable electricity supply: Solar panels on every public building and state houses.
New Mental Health First Responders: A whole new branch of first responders to deal specifically with mental health issues to talk people down and seek help rather than calling then Police and arresting people.
Artist Benefit: As part of a degrowth Capitalism model, pay Artists to make public art, use that art as a means to deal with the wondrous grief caused by the destruction of the planet.
Māori Parliament: An indigenous Parliament that amplifies Māori political voices.
Universal Student Union: Allow Student Unions to be the incubators for tomorrows politicians and stop students simply being cash cows for corporate education.
Universal Migrant Union: Stop migrant worker exploitation with universal student membership.
Retirement Village Unions: These scumbag retirement villages abuse their elderly and sick clients, universal Retirement Village Unions would stop them being exploited.
Pensioner Unions: Give our elderly a voice!
Sugar Tax to fund free dental.
Financial Transaction Tax to target speculators
Free Public Transport to lower emissions and make an impact on the wallets of the poor.
Wealth Tax aimed at the super wealthy
Inheritance Tax only realised after death
First $20 000 tax free for everyone
Lower GST to 10% to take the tax burden off the poor
Nationalise Early Childhood Education to lower the cost for working mothers and fathers
Without vision the Union Movement is dead.
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Bomber:
> Solar panels on every public building and state houses
Solar panels *and* sodium ion batteries. Providing both distributed storage for energy from intermittent renewables, and emergency energy in a power cut. Unlike lithium ion batteries, sodium ions create no fire risk and much simpler to dispose of responsibly at EOL.
> new branch of first responders to deal specifically with mental health issues
A lot of festivals now have Psycare, and similar teams who do exactly this. If festival organisers can do it, why can’t the government do it for the public at large?
The moan is always low productivity therefore low wages. On the otherhand high wages incentivise managers to up their game to apply better tech, better training, cheaper capital and demand cheaper electricity to improve productivity and profit.