Alliance Party media release – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Thursday 23 March 2006

Alliance says people power can end low wage ripoff culture

Alliance co-leader Len Richards says the recent actions by young people in Auckland against low pay and youth rates have the full support of the Alliance Party.

He says these campaigns indicate a groundswell amongst working people, with low pay and job security fast becoming the hot issues for 2006.

"The Alliance thinks it is great that young workers and students are organizing themselves and getting active politically in this way."

He says that attacks from the corporate media and National Party on school student protest action were pathetic.

"They would prefer young people to be scared into submission and ripped off by big business, but it seems that young people want a say over their lives and their work."

He says that young people should not be fazed by the attacks by a "bully establishment that wants to crush down the young rather than support their initiative, courage and intelligence."

The Alliance supports an immediate end to youth rates, a minimum wage of $15 and strong measures to end casualization and insecure jobs.

Mr Richards says the Alliance also supports the current campaigns against low pay in the health care and service sector including Fair Share for Aged Care campaign and the Healthy Pay for Healthy Hospitals campaign.

ENDS

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