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RNZ News
16-06-2025
- Politics
- RNZ News
Minister Brooke van Velden says sick leave cuts for part-timers is what businesses want
Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden. Photo: RNZ / Reece Baker Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden says the possible sick leave cuts for part-time employees is something business owners want. At the moment everyone gets 10 paid days a year. Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden said earlier that she was looking at changes that would make leave proportionate to the number of hours worked. She told Checkpoint it was not a new idea, and she had been looking at sick leave changes alongside ongoing work to replace the Holidays Act. "I have been working away behind the scenes for about the last six months now trying to work out technical details to replace this act." When asked if it would be based on hours or days she said she could not say as cabinet had not signed off on how the changes would work. "This is something that businesses do want, they want that proportionate leave... some companies that work with part-time workers have quite a few part-time workers, you know, like a cafe or small retail shops and that's a lot of sick leave they are on the hook for." Van Velden did not give evidence on how much sick leave part-timers were taking. "That's not the reason behind doing this change," she said. "It's to do with whether it's right, and is it right that someone who is working one day a week is entitled to the same sick leave allocation as someone who works five days a week - that's what we are basing this policy on, whether it's right." She said she believed someone who worked "what we expect to be a full week", would have the full entitlement this included someone who worked 40 hours in four days. When asked about how the change may disproportionately impact women - more women than men are in part-time jobs - she said it had nothing to do with gender. "If we want true gender equality we have to stop with this disingenuous argument that women are the ones who will be losing out because woman are the ones expected to do childcare." Prime Minister Christopher Luxon told Morning Report earlier he knew it was something Minister Brooke van Velden was looking into. "She looks at a whole raft of workplace relations," Luxon said. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
16-06-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
Workers could be worse off under potential change to sick leave
Government plans to change the number of paid sick days workers can take could leave part time employees worse off. Since changes in 2021 New Zealand workers are legally entitled to ten paid sick days a year,regardless of how many hours or days they work. But the government's looking to change to a pro rata system or proportional leave; where sick day allowances will be different for part and full time workers. The Prime Minister confirmed the review, but says the exact details are yet to be decided. Workplace Relations Minister Brooke Van Velden, who will lead any changes, spoke to Lisa Owen. To embed this content on your own webpage, cut and paste the following: See terms of use.
7NEWS
12-06-2025
- Business
- 7NEWS
Government sidesteps mandatory employment rules designed to Close the Gap in two thirds contracts, audit finds
An audit of rules designed to Close the Gap for First Nations peoples has revealed poor compliance by government bodies. Indigenous employment requirements were sidestepped in two-thirds of the contracts issued by Commonwealth entities, including the Departments of Defence, Education, Workplace Relations, Infrastructure and Home Affairs, the audit report said. The mandatory minimum requirements (MMRs) are targets to ensure that at least three per cent of the workforce is made up of First Nations peoples. Government contracts over $7.5 million are also subject to these targets, which can alternatively be met through the engagement of Indigenous-owned businesses as suppliers. Tenderers are required to specify how they plan to achieve the MMRs. The targets were introduced to ensure First Nations peoples benefit from some of the larger projects outsourced by the Commonwealth, including those in remote areas. But since MMRs were made binding for contractors in 2016, 63 per cent of all recorded contracts have been exempted. The 1,475 exempted contracts are worth a total of nearly $70 billion. Of those exemptions, 34 per cent — valued at more than $30 billion — were filed with no explanation, with reporting officials simply ticking the 'other' category on the exemption form. The National Indigenous Australians Agency (NIAA), which is responsible for implementing the MMRs, said these requirements are just one component of the Indigenous Procurement Policy (IPP), established in 2015. The NIAA told the audit office that contracts were exempted under the 'other' category because entities 'are in practice non-compliant with the Indigenous Procurement Policy'. 'Entities' use of the 'other' exemption category for non-compliant contracts obscures the degree of noncompliance with the MMRs and is not appropriate,' the report said. 'The NIAA does not provide complete guidance on the use of exemptions or assurance over the legitimacy of exemptions. The NIAA has not considered the strategic implications of exemption usage for the achievement of policy objectives.' This comes almost five years after a 2020 Auditor-General report found that the administration of well-designed MMRs 'had been undermined by ineffective implementation and monitoring by the policy owner and insufficient compliance by the selected entities.' Of the recommendations handed down after the 2020 audit, the latest report found that entities had only 'partly implemented' them. 'Systems have been set up to allow potentially invalid exemptions. There is a lack of guidance and assurance over the appropriate use of exemptions.' The latest audit also found that the NIAA has not been able to demonstrate that MMRs are improving Indigenous economic participation. However, the NIAA said that prior to the introduction of the policy, Indigenous businesses secured limited contracts through Commonwealth procurement. The policy has since significantly increased purchasing from Indigenous businesses. All entities contacted by the audit office, including the NIAA, responded by welcoming the audit findings and committed to strengthening the procurement and reporting processes required to meet the compulsory targets. The NIAA has pledged to continue supporting entities that are struggling to comply with the targets, but added: 'As with all other elements of the Commonwealth Procurement Rules, it is the responsibility of each Commonwealth entity to meet the obligations of the IPP.'
RNZ News
15-05-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Workplace Relations Minister refuses regular meetings with union
employment 27 minutes ago The Minister for Workplace Relations and Safety Brooke van Velden has refused to have regular meetings with the Council of Trade Unions and has ruled out undoing the Pay Equity Changes. New Zealand Council of Trade Unions president Richard Wagstaff spoke to Charlotte Cook.
