Maxim Institute - real issues - No. 264

Maxim Institute - real issues - No. 264 2 August 2007 www.maxim.org.nz

A bit of give and take Rebuilding relationship Voice of peace?

IN THE NEWS Report suggests new policy 'deeply divided' Worrying new findings link stress and work

A Bit Of Give And Take

The Select Committee reviewing the Employment Relations (Flexible Working Hours) Amendment Bill has released its report this week, recommending that the Bill pass with a few amendments. The Bill, which was put forward in 2005 by Green MP Sue Kedgley, would create a 'statutory right' for certain employees to request a variation in their working hours or arrangements. While flexibility in their job may be of great help to some, such a relationship should not be regulated by government, and doing so may have a negative impact on the relationship that exists between employer and employee.

If passed, the Bill would amend the current legislative scheme, giving more flexibility to any employee who has in their care 'children under five years,' a 'disabled child,' or the responsibility of a 'dependent relative.' The Bill would give that employee the right to make a written request for working arrangements that better suit their situation, such as differing hours or the freedom to work from home.

It would then place obligations on the employer to consider whether the request could 'reasonably be accommodated,' having regard to an exhaustive list of factors. These factors include the 'inability to reorganise work among existing staff, inability to recruit additional staff, detrimental impact on quality, [and the] burden of additional costs.'

Missing from this list is the culture of a workplace, the development or maintenance of a team, or the importance of relationships in running an effective business. While large companies may not notice if a couple of staff members work from home, or work different hours from the others, the effect on smaller companies could be substantial. Face-to-face contact and the building of relationships can be a large part of what creates a work culture that holds businesses together over the long term and ensures productivity.

Of course flexibility in the workplace can be a good thing and with the current tight labour market, even without legislation, such requests from employees are likely to be responded to in the affirmative by reasonable bosses. However giving the employee a 'right' to ask, and limiting the employer's ability to say 'no' removes the framework of goodwill and instead has the potential to create friction between the employee and employer. We also need to look at the culture that is driving this law change—why have we become so obsessed with economic growth that taking time out from the work force to look after an elderly relative or a dependent child is no longer valued?

Read the Transport and Industrial Relations Select Committee report

Rebuilding Relationship

At the beginning of the 21st century a common thread seems to be emerging through many of the problems the West is facing: isolation. We seem to be more disconnected, more isolated, more alone. This isolation has become a dominant force in our society and can be seen to have its roots in the cultural forces of individualism and consumerism, which wreak such havoc on meaningful relationships, and which our culture has been quick to embrace. Michael Schluter, founder of the UK-based Relationships Foundation, is at the cutting edge of new thought and policy on relationships, and offers a critique of this narrow reductionism, instead focusing on a philosophy of relationism. This week, he visited New Zealand to dialogue with the Maxim Institute and various community leaders.

Michael highlights how a culture where personal satisfaction reigns, ends up destroying the foundations of mutual obligation, sacrifice and duty which connect us together. Instead we become transient, entering relationships only for a short time at a surface level. 'If freedom of choice is my dominant value I am more likely to contemplate ending a relationship if it goes wrong, and less likely to be deterred by social constraint, because in the mega-community, while it is generally still seen as wrong to shirk your responsibilities, it is just as strongly affirmed that the individual should not be inconvenienced or 'tied down' against his will.'

Clearly we can see how various modern innovations, and even policy initiatives, can tend to exacerbate this. For example, email allows us to communicate without the need for face-to-face meetings. Similarly, the way insurance schemes and welfare benefits are structured encourages us to rely solely on ourselves atomised from a wider web of kinship and belonging. This deprives the extended family and wider community of its traditional role. Even the way we structure businesses allows a detachment between those investing and those who hold decision-making power and responsibility for a company. While all these things have positive aspects to them, such as encouraging entrepreneurship and limiting risk, at the same time they bring a relational cost. A cost which we often neglect to notice, even though its devastating consequences are changing the face of our society, abstracting us from each other.

Where we take our culture now is not a simple question. How to rebuild connections in light of the technological advances and the family and community breakdown we have experienced is not an easy task. However, within our society there are many stories of people building connections, by finding ways of buying houses together with extended family, or creating a business culture which encourages people to value relationships. These examples along with the value Maori culture places on community (which is part of New Zealand's heritage) suggest that it is possible for us to once again place relationship at the heart of our society and decision-making, we just need to decide to start doing it.

Find out more about the Relationships Foundation

Voice Of Peace?

A British politician speaking in Auckland last week has caused a storm of controversy. Respect Party MP George Galloway was brought out by local political group, the Residents Action Movement, to address the topic of 'Islamophobia' at a series of meetings, entitled Voices of Peace. His visit was timed to coincide with a Christian conference on the topic of Islam.

George Galloway is renowned for his outspoken support for Palestine, Iraq and other Islamic countries and his vitriolic and vituperative condemnation of the West and its leaders. He has recently been suspended by the House of Commons for 18 days over various allegations relating to funding of a charity he was associated with. The charity, which campaigned for sanctions on Iraq to be lifted, allegedly received money that originally came from the UN Oil for Food programme, although Mr Galloway denies any wrongdoing.

His talks in New Zealand centred on his conception of 'Islamophobia' and how it related to the West's involvement in the Middle East. He condemned as 'Islamophobes' those who suggest Islam encourages Muslims to commit violence against those who do not share the Islamic faith. He called for New Zealand to introduce religious vilification laws to combat alleged 'Islamophobia' by restricting free speech. However, he failed to recognise that discrimination based on religious belief is already prohibited under New Zealand law.

It is the ability to speak freely in New Zealand that allows Mr Galloway to come and share his perspective with an audience. Somewhat ironically for a 'voice of peace,' George Galloway attacked those in the audience who had been involved with the other conference on Islam, which expressed concern about the possible link between violence and fundamentalist Islamic beliefs. Mr Galloway labelled those who had been involved 'snake-oil salesmen,' 'bigots' and 'KKK' without the hoods. It is lucky for this 'voice of peace' that our law protects his right to freedom of expression, however offensive, as it should. Freedom of speech is a precious liberty which is at the foundation of democracy and dialogue. But if Mr Galloway really is seeking peace and dialogue across racial and religious divides -- a praiseworthy goal -- he might consider that it is precisely the ability to dialogue with those who hold different views and to speak freely that enables peace. Silencing people through legislation, or marginalising them using offensive labels, does not.

Read the report of the House of Commons Committee on Standards and Privileges, 'Conduct of Mr George Galloway' http://www.publications.parliament.uk/pa/cm200607/cmselect/cmstnprv/909/909i.pdf

In The News

Report Suggests New Policy 'Deeply Divided'

A new report has been released by British think tank Reform, which looks at changes being made since Gordon Brown took over from Tony Blair as Prime Minister. Retreat from reform - The initial policy decisions of the new Government suggests that Gordon Brown is introducing higher spending and is centralising many of Tony Blair's reforms. It describes the Government's recent decisions as 'a deeply divided policy programme,' that 'accepts the case for less government intervention and competition in the private economy, while taking actions that will decisively weaken competition and choice in public services.'

Read Retreat from reform - The initial policy decisions of the new Government

Worrying New Findings Link Stress And Work

New research has been released that shows a strong link between high levels of stress at work and depression or anxiety disorders. The research was conducted in Dunedin, using data from a longitudinal study of 891 participants, aged 32. The research found that those with 'high psychological job demands' had approximately twice the risk of developing a mental illness as those in a less demanding job, a result which was not affected by the 'socio-economic position' of the job, or 'a personality tendency to report negatively.' The research also found troubling results that 'work stress predicted the first onset of depression and anxiety among individuals with no prior history of these disorders.'

Read Work stress precipitates depression and anxiety in young, working women and men

Talking Point

'... it is through our relationships that we first learn to balance our own needs against those of the group.'

Michael Schluter and David Lee

ENDS

© Scoop Media