CTU Media Release

6 June 2013

Government’s Employment law to come under international scrutiny

The CTU has written to Minister of Labour Simon Bridges urging him to seek the advice of the International Labour Conference on the legality of his proposed changes to labour law when he attends the ILO conference in Geneva in two weeks’ time.

Following comments made in Parliament on 4 June, the CTU has written to Minister of Labour Simon Bridges regarding his statement that we would test what the International Labour Organisation thinks about the Employment Relations Amendment Bill.

Helen Kelly, CTU President says “in Parliament on 4 June, the Minister was asked if he agreed with advice from officials that the ability for employers to opt out of multi-employer bargaining may breach our obligations under ILO Convention 98 on the right to organise and collective bargaining.”

“His response in full was ‘no, not at all, but in a couple of weeks I am going with my new “bestie” Helen Kelly to the ILO in Geneva and we will be able to ask it then what it thinks.”

Speaking from Geneva, Helen Kelly says “this is an important matter and the fact the Minister appears willing to seek this advice makes his trip here very worthwhile. There is no point attending such an important UN ILO conference at the time your Government is being advised it is breaching its undertakings to that very organisation without using the opportunity it provides."

The CTU has offered to work with MBIE officials to seek International Labour Organisation advice on the new Employment Relation Amendment Bill and New Zealand’s compliance with ILO conventions that we have ratified around the right to organise and collective bargaining.

Helen Kelly says “I have no doubt while the Minister is here he will be promoting New Zealand as a supporter of the UN and its constituent bodies in particular to promote its bid for the Security Council, but it will be judged on its respect for the international undertakings it has agreed to and this includes ILO conventions. My hope is the Minister agrees to use his visit here to test his belief that the law changes he is proposing are compliant with international labour standards”.

“Wages are already too low in New Zealand. One way to lift them is through collective bargaining. Yet the Government wants to undermine collective bargaining. This is such a negative approach to workers when what we need is a fair employment law that will improve wages and conditions”, she says.

ENDS

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