Further industrial action today means there's been more strikes in nine months than the previous nine years
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There have been more strikes in the past nine months in New Zealand than the previous nine years put together, according to the opposition leader Simon Bridges.
He added that after less than nine months 32,000 workers have been involved in industrial action, or signaled their intention to be – compared to just over 27,000 that undertook strike action in the previous nine years.
“Today 4,000 core public servants at MBIE and IRD announced they would undertake industrial action, following on from the likes of bus drivers and cinema and port workers who have repeatedly disrupted businesses,” said Bridges.
“On top of this, around 49,000 teachers are also considering their options. That’s around 81,000 workers involved in or considering strike action this year.”
Earlier in the month, Burger King employees went on strike for better pay and conditions following a year of ongoing negotiations with Unite Union.
The employees alleged that they were among the lowest paid workers in the fast food industry, with store managers on $16.88 per hour (38 cents above the minimum wage) and workers on salaries expected to do an unreasonable amount of hours of unpaid overtime.
Moreover, about 150 workers at Wairarapa company, Premier Bacon began industrial action today in support of their pay claims.
The members are seeking a pay rise of 75 cents an hour, as well as an additional day’s sick leave, and an additional day of bereavement leave.
The workers will refuse all overtime until the matter is resolved, according to E tū lead organiser, Mark James.
“The company depends on our members doing overtime, as the plant is healthy and doing good business,” said James.
“Our members work in a cold, damp environment with temperatures below 4 degrees, so they get sick more often.
“And because they work with food, they may be required to stay away from work if they catch a bug – and some must do this when they have no sick leave left.”
According to James, the total cost of meeting the members’ claims is about $118,000 – compared with company profits for the year to December, 2017 of $5.55 million.