PSA Media Release
May 4, 2009
For Immediate Use

Government puts vital Auckland services at risk

The Public Service Association is warning the government that its plan for restructuring Auckland’s local government is putting vital services at risk.

The government has today agreed on a timetable for the legislation to establish Auckland’s new local government structure. The first piece of legislation will create the Auckland Governance Transition Agency that will establish Auckland’s new local government structure.

“We’re concerned that Local Government Minister Rodney Hide has stated that the transition agency will be responsible for the ‘rationalisation’ of Auckland’s new government arrangements.”

“That sounds to us like the agency will begin cutting local government staff in Auckland.”

“Our warning to the Minister and the government is that cutting local government staff in Auckland puts vital services, that Aucklanders rely on, at risk,” says Richard Wagstaff.

Around 1.4 million Aucklanders rely on their local government workers for services like clean water, reliable roads, rubbish and waste water removal and easy and affordable access to their parks, pools, libraries and recreation centres.

“The royal commission recognised that the day-to-day needs of Aucklanders must be met during the transition to the new local government structure,” says Richard Wagstaff.

“That’s why it recommended the employment of all staff at existing councils be transferred to the new Auckland Council until local government elections in 2010, so there could be ‘business as usual’ for Aucklanders in this transition period.”

“The government chose to ignore the royal commission and instead decided that there will be a ‘rationalisation’ of council staff that will be mostly completed by October next year.”

“This means that 6000 Auckland local government workers, providing vital services to 1.4 million Aucklanders, have no idea if they will lose their jobs between now and October next year.”

“We’re alarmed the government is now instructing the transition agency to begin the ‘rationalisation’ of
council staff in Auckland.”

“We’re also alarmed that the legislation setting up the agency is being passed under urgency without select committee hearings so there will be no chance for anyone to make a submission pointing out the risks of this ‘rationalisation’ of Auckland’s local government workforce,” says Richard Wagstaff.

The government’s treatment of Auckland local government workers is in stark contrast to the Queensland government when it reduced councils in the state from 157 to 73 in March last year.

The Queensland government guaranteed that all council staff, below the level of chief executive, would keep their jobs, and their pay and conditions, for three years until the state’s next local government elections in 2012.

Queensland’s Local Government Minister Andrew Fraser explained why: “Local government reform is about building stronger councils for our growing State and for that to be achieved we need to maintain a strong local government workforce.”

“If our government is serious about building stronger local government in Auckland, like Queensland it should ensure the region retains the region’s local government workforce,” says Richard Wagstaff.

The PSA has 2400 members working for Auckland’s eight local authorities and council-controlled organisations.

ENDS

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