Latest news with #PublicServiceAssociationTePūkengaHereTikangaMahi
Scoop
5 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
All Workers Will Now Be Able To Be Fired At Will - The Govt Has No Shame
All workers will be in the firing line for instant dismissal regardless of circumstances under a law change now before Parliament. Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brook van Velden has introduced the Employment Relations Amendment Bill which will make it harder for workers to bring personal grievance claims. "This is plainly and simply a fundamental erosion of workers' rights to secure employment - the Minister is effectively giving employers the green light to fire workers at will," said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi. "It will be virtually impossible for a worker to bring a successful personal grievance if unfairly sacked. This is a radical change for every workplace in New Zealand, again exposing the Government's priority to make life easier for employers, harder for workers. "If a worker is dismissed unjustifiably, the only remedy is through a personal grievance. There is no problem here the Government is trying to solve. The current remedies are already very limited with reinstatement only being ordered in 16 cases at the Employment Relations Authority in 2024 according to their Annual Report. "But now the Bill will make it easier for employers to find a way to undermine any personal grievance claim by establishing some conduct by the worker that contributed to a dismissal. "Under the Bill, an employer will be able to amplify any conduct by the workers - it won't be hard for some justification to be found to defend against the claim. Advertisement - scroll to continue reading "This is all about weakening any claim and discouraging a worker from bringing a claim in the first place. That will mean workers will find it much harder to be reinstated which is ultimately what most workers want or get compensation for hurt and humiliation. "The Minister trumpeted the changes as all about 'labour market flexibility'. We heard the same thing in 1991 with the Employment Contracts Act which the Government then promised would increase productivity. That didn't happen, it just stripped workers of rights and emboldened employers. "We are seeing the same playbook now with planned cuts to sick pay, pay equity, the 90-day fire at will law, weakening health and safety requirements for employers and the axing of Fair Pay Agreements. "That all amounts to less secure employment, lower wages and more dangerous workplaces. "The Government has no shame and workers across New Zealand will pay the price for that for years to come."
Scoop
5 days ago
- Health
- Scoop
Private Health Contracts Advance Govt's Health Privatisation Agenda
The Government's directive to Health New Zealand to give 10-year contracts to private hospitals for elective surgeries is a further step towards privatisation of health care, the PSA says. Stripping money out of the public health system to pay private, for-profit providers will not solve the Government's underfunding of health, Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi National Secretary Fleur Fitzsimons says. "The long-term result of outsourcing to private providers will continue to weaken the provision of public health care by starving it of funds, giving the Government a further excuse to privatise more and more healthcare. "The plan to contract to private hospital long-term is ushering in the privatisation of the health system, which will inevitably mean syphoning money off from providing health services for all to pay profits to private corporations. This will result in only those who can pay being able to access adequate health care and other vital services. "The Government wants to drive us towards a US-style health system where the private sector dominates and sick people without health insurance are left at hospital doors. "The Minister says he is unapologetic about his directive, but the directive was kept under wraps for months. "If you judge the Government by its actions not its words, it is clear this lack of transparency is cover for privatisation by stealth of public health care. "Public health services belong to all of us and are there to deliver for people not shareholders. "Privatisation will also mean that the workers who deliver quality public, health services will see their livelihoods threatened by redundancies and reduced pay and conditions," Fitzsimons says. The Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi is Aotearoa New Zealand's largest trade union, representing and supporting more than 95,000 workers across central government, state-owned enterprises, local councils, health boards and community groups.
Scoop
22-05-2025
- Politics
- Scoop
Budget Confirms $12.6 Billion Theft Of Wages From Women - Pay Equity Betrayal Laid Bare
Budget 2025 reveals the Government's shame in taking more than $12 billion from New Zealand women. "This is a mean and heartless Budget that cements in the pay equity betrayal. It exposes the Government's naked theft of wages from thousands of underpaid women to pay for tax cuts for landlords," said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi. "This is the wage theft budget." "This is a Budget paid for by taking money from care and support workers - $60 million a week - taken from library assistants, social workers and others who had expected pay equity settlements that would see them be paid what they are worth. "The Government promised to tackle the cost of living - how does taking billions of dollars from the pay of so many underpaid women help them balance their own budgets? It's just another broken promise, and kiwi women are paying for this. "We call on the Government to do what's fair - sit down with workers, unions, employers and pay equity experts in a proper select committee process and come up with a new framework that can work better for all. This is how a democracy is supposed to operate. "Instead, we have this harsh new process, restricting the claims that can be lodged, all done under urgency. This has denied women the chance to have a say over how they can get the fair wages they deserve. On pay equity for the funded sector "It's appalling that the Government is washing its hands of its responsibility to the community service and iwi providers for pay equity settlements - investing in this workforce is critical to ensure there is sufficient support in place as our population ages. On health "The Government will trumpet record health spending, that is a misleading lie. This Government has failed to fund health consistently with increased costs, laid off hundreds of workers, and imposed a hiring freeze on clinicians. Health costs are running far higher than inflation; the Budget only keeps the lights on and does not meet demand from a growing an ageing population. On other cuts to public services "This Budget lays out further damaging cuts to public services. New Zealand cannot afford more cuts to our public services and more destructive job losses. "The public service cuts have already cost New Zealanders dearly and we will see the price of this Government's failure to invest being laid out in coroners' reports, Ministerial inquiries and more investigation by the Auditor-General such as we saw with the recent report into Oranga Tamariki's failing in cutting funding to community providers."
Scoop
18-05-2025
- Business
- Scoop
Budget Week Blow - Govt Axes Experts Backing Innovative Kiwi Start-Ups
Callaghan Innovation that supports the next wave of innovative Kiwi companies. This Friday, 15 highly skilled business innovation advisers at Callaghan Innovation will be shown the door. "The Government is sacking these smart and successful business advisors while loudly beating the drum about its economic growth agenda - it's hypocritical, and makes no sense," said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi. The team supports Frontier Ventures - innovative start-ups in the science and technology area that have the potential to be world beaters. "If the Government want to nurture the next Rocket Lab, then the wrap around services offered by the commercialisation team are exactly the support start-ups need to go to the next level. "These are industry experts hired from the private sector who've been helping young companies navigate the commercial world and prepare them to scale up and succeed. "This is fully funded, expert advice - a critical service being axed with a proven track record of success with no thought as to the impacts. "There is no government agency picking up this work - the next wave of smart, innovative Kiwi entrepreneurs is being left high and dry. The service will not be picked up by the private sector as these companies are fledgling businesses with limited resources. "It's ironic that the Government just last week announced additional venture capital funding but is pulling the rug from under the very service that helps start-ups get to the stage of being able to seek venture capital. "Sacking these people is all about saving money, not securing a prosperous future for New Zealand - it's just another short-sighted decision by the Government without regard to consequences, as we have seen across the public sector."
Scoop
15-05-2025
- Health
- Scoop
Children Pay Price Of Oranga Tamariki Contracting Fiasco - Auditor-General Issues Damning Indictment Of Govt Cuts
The Auditor-General's report into Oranga Tamariki's provider contracts lays bare the reckless way the Government ordered cuts without regard to how children would be harmed. In 2023 the Government ordered a 6.5% cut of Oranga Tamariki's overall funding, triggering a chaotic review of contracts with hundreds of community service providers - some even told their contracts would end with only days' notice last year. "The report confirms what we have said all along - the Government has totally botched its rushed spending cuts with little regard to the consequences - children are the casualties of these decisions," said Fleur Fitzsimons, National Secretary for the Public Service Association Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi. The report says 'its decisions were not adequately informed by evidence of how they would affect children and their families. The effects of decisions on children and their families are still not known. Given that this is the core role of Oranga Tamariki, it is unacceptable'. "It's staggering that the Government can order an organisation that supports some of New Zealand's most vulnerable tamariki and rangatahi, and their whānau to make such bad decisions. "Without doubt children will have been impacted as providers had to stop services or move children to other service providers at short notice - it's just not good enough when the welfare of children should be at the heart of these decisions. "This all speaks to the cruel nature of the Government's decisions which put saving money to fund tax cuts ahead of supporting vulnerable children. "The Government promised no impacts on frontline services - this report again exposes this lie as we have seen throughout the public service. There is nothing more frontline than protecting children. "The PSA is still awaiting a response from the Auditor-General about whether he will investigate cuts at Health New Zealand which also impact frontline health services - this report means he should. "The chickens are coming home to roost as we warned they would. Without doubt in the months and years ahead we will see more damage that the Government is inflicting on frontline services from these short-sighted cuts. More New Zealanders will pay the price - it's unacceptable."
