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Housing NZ suspends union members for lawful action

NZPSA MEDIA RELEASE

Dec 1, 2010

For Immediate Use


Housing New Zealand suspends union members for taking lawful industrial action


By suspending staff who were standing up for a fair deal at work Housing New Zealand has shown itself up as an employer that bullies rather than listens, says the NZPSA.

NZPSA members at Housing NZ’s National Contact Centre and IT Service Desk were not answering calls or emails between 10am and 2pm today as part of industrial action.

Staff have been trying to bargain a fair settlement with their employer for over a year to gain some certainty around job restructuring, set hours of work and a fair and transparent pay system.

“Housing New Zealand has been holding management workshops that propose values like “respect” and “support” be a centre part of its strategic plan. It should be listening respectfully to its staff not looking at pie charts and flow graphs on how respect ranks in the organisation,” says NZPSA National Secretary Richard Wagstaff


“All our members simply want is a fair exchange for the work they do. Staff at Housing New Zealand don’t even have set hours of work. That’s unacceptable.

“The Corporation needs to listen to staff not suspend them. If it did that our members wouldn’t need to take this action in the first place.

“Suspending staff is a bullying tactic designed to wear our members down and force them to give up their action for fair pay and conditions. Some of those suspended were taken out of a meeting one by one and simply didn’t come back to the meeting.

“This is a very rare and disappointing reaction from a State sector employer. It’s pure intimidation. A respectful employer would not have been this heavy handed

“Our members remain determined to continue with their industrial action and if anything this reaction on the part of their employer will make them even more determined,” says Richard Wagstaff.


ENDS

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