Contractors minimum wage bill deserves support of Parliament
Media release: Council of Trade Unions
Wednesday 22 July, 2015
Contractors minimum wage bill deserves the support of Parliament
A bill that will allow workers engaged as contractors to access minimum pay rates deserves the full support of Parliament tonight.
Labour MP David Parker’s Minimum Wage (Contractor Remuneration) Amendment Bill is on today’s order paper and is likely to come up for a first reading later tonight.
CTU Secretary Sam Huggard said that the bill would ensure contractors doing work such as leaflet delivering were paid at a rate at least equivalent to the minimum wage.
“Far too many workers find themselves in situations where contracting arrangements are used to get around statutory minimum pay.”
“This kind of sub-contracted work is seeing more and more New Zealanders with contracts where they cannot possibly earn a living wage in the number of hours required to complete the job.”
“This bill would close that loophole, and we urge full support,” Sam Huggard said.
ENDS