In The Unionist this week: National's plans for accident compensation, new work rights to request flexible working arrangements come in to force, the launch of the EPMU's work rights campaign, and economic news this week. [1]

Competition in ACC removes choice for everyone

Unions, business and legal experts have this week all raised questions about National's plans for the future of accident compensation.

On Wednesday it was revealed [2] that Australian insurers were being advised by brokers to get ready for a multi-billion dollar windfall when National privatises ACC.  The report’s authors said that National was keeping quiet on their plans publically, but privately they understand National will privatise the scheme.

The Council of Trade Unions asked National to explain how their plan for ‘choice’ in accident compensation could benefit anyone in New Zealand.

“Workers don’t want ACC to be opened up to competition, a move which will take away choice, not give it,” CTU president Helen Kelly said yesterday [3].

“In Australia, workers pay on average $2 in every $100 towards their worker compensation scheme.  In New Zealand, under ACC, it is 78 cents per $100 – and this is for better cover, higher benefits and quicker access, lower claim management and administration rates, and kiwi workers return to work faster than their Australian counterparts.”

“But National’s proposals wouldn’t just be felt in the workplace.  ACC provides comprehensive no fault cover to a wide range of New Zealanders who would be required to buy private cover but for the scheme.  Sports groups, schools, parents at home, older people and high risk industries like adventure tourism would all stand to lose under a competitive model of accident cover.”

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union passed an urgent remit [4] on the issue at their national conference this week.  Workplace delegates from around the country said yesterday they rejected any plan to introduce profit-seeking insurers to the ACC scheme because of the risk that working families would lose coverage and security.

Finance sector union finsec also criticised [5] the proposal to change ACC.   "We have had informal indications from the companies we deal with in the insurance sector that they are once again gearing up to profit off New Zealanders’ injuries,” said Andrew Campbell from finsec.

The Public Service Association, who has 670 union members at ACC,  said all New Zealanders would be the losers [6] if ACC was privatised - ACC workers could face losing their jobs and New Zealand workers and employers would end up paying higher accident compensation premiums to overseas owned insurance companies.”

On TVNZ's breakfast programme the convenor of the NZ Law Society on ACC, Don Rennie, said that the insurance industry was not set up to handle long-term claims or to handle rehabilitation.

"It's been tried once before, in 1999, when the ACC was privatised in relation to work-related claims...in the time that [ACC was privatised] there was a great amount of competition between insurance companies to buy business."

"We saw what happened in Australia when the same sort of thing happened.  In the early 1980s, there were two insurance companies...which were competing heavily for worker’s compensation premiums.  They cut their premiums and they got into competition with each other until eventually they both went broke, and left the Victorian state government to pick up the pieces.”

Business New Zealand's Paul Mackay told the Dominion Post [7] that there was no demand for a move back to a competitive ACC market among employers "and we certainly have not argued for it".

"Our internal thinking is that the issues that flow from doing it probably outweigh the benefits ... and the upheaval outweighs the big three for businesses, which are political certainty, financial certainty and economic stability," Paul Mackay told the Dominion Post. 

Links: For more on ACC from the CTU, click here [8].
Audio/video: Click here [9] to see the Law Society's Don Rennie on TVNZ's breakfast programme, or click here [10] to download an audio only podcast.

Flexible work needed to balance work and life demands

“A new work right for employees with care responsibilities to request flexible working arrangements reflects workers’ increasing need for balance in their lives,” CTU secretary Carol Beaumont said this week. [11]

On Tuesday amendments to employment law came into effect allowing workers who care for others to ask for flexibility in their hours, days or place of work – arrangements such as flexi-time, home-working, career breaks, term-time working, altered hours or job sharing.

“We need laws that take account for our responsibilities outside of our employment, and flexible working arrangements can be part of the solution,” Carol Beaumont said.  “Legislation isn’t the only answer, but it does create a climate and culture of acceptance about the need for employer openness to requests - as well as a transparent process for employers to refuse requests.”

[12]The CTU launched a new leaflet for workers explaining flexible work [11], at a Coalition for Quality Flexible Work celebration breakfast in Wellington.

“Our message to workers not covered by the law will be to ask anyway, as many employers may consider their request for a change in working arrangements.  And when the Act is reviewed in two years time we will be arguing for its extension to cover all workers.”

“We were proud to campaign in support of the Bill put forward by the Green’s Sue Kedgley alongside a group of more than 50 other organisations in the Coalition for Quality Flexible Work.  And we also acknowledge the Labour, NZ First Maori, United Future and Progressive parties and the two independent MPs for supporting this law change.”

Audio/video: Click here [13] to see Carol Beaumont speaking on TVNZ's news article on the new law, and here to see TV3's story [14]. 

[15]EPMU launch work rights campaign

One of the country's biggest unions this week launched their Work Rights Wage Drive campaign, announcing 25 mass member rallies across New Zealand throughout the month of August, aiming to raise public awareness about the importance of work rights and higher wages this election.

EPMU national secretary Andrew Little says strong work rights are central to the wellbeing of New Zealand workers and the economy and is a pivotal issue today.

“The strength of people’s work rights directly affects their wages, whether it’s having the employment security to ask for a pay rise, the collective bargaining rights to raise wages through campaigns like Fair Share 5% in ’05, or Kiwisaver and regular increases in the minimum wage.

“At a time when Kiwis are feeling the pinch from higher prices and political parties are talking about closing the wage gap with Australia it’s important voters understand the real solutions won’t come from tax cuts but from stronger work rights and higher wages.

“New Zealand’s wages are still recovering from the last time our work rights were stripped from us and we don’t want to see it happen again.

“That’s why we’ll be challenging parties to provide detailed policies on work rights and wages and encouraging every one of our members to think very carefully before they vote in this year’s election.”

For more information about the campaign, including a schedule and photos from the launch visit www.workrights.org.nz [15]

Economic News

• "A lot has been said about the need to increase productivity in New Zealand workplaces.  What we need to see more of is steps to achieve this, and so I was pleased last week to attend the launch of an initiative by two unions who are set about doing just this" - CTU president Helen Kelly said in a column this week.  Click here for the full column [16]. 
• On Wednesday the CTU hosted an economics forum with Stephen Toplis, Susan St John, Brian Easton and Peter Harris.  CTU Economist Peter Conway discussed the forum and other economic news on TVNZ's Business Breakfast programme on Wednesday, click here [17] to watch it online, or click here [18] to download the audio only podcast.
• The CTU Monthly Economic Bulletin came out this week.  The full bulletin is here [19], and below is an excerpt on wages and tax from the opening commentary of the bulletin, which also discussed the latest on the climate change legislation.
  Tax cuts are coming. Of course the National Party has already started a bidding war on that front. But in my view that still leaves wage increases as the most likely source of increased income for households in the coming year. Already the Reserve Bank Governor has said that if he is going to ‘look through’ the spike in inflation so should employers, unions and workers. In other words he wants to constrain wage growth in order to discipline inflation expectations. We simply cannot accept that real wages should fall. Our main arguments about embedded low wages are not actually based on short-term inflationary considerations – but we will need to keep the pressure on over the coming period without losing the huge public support that has been generated for decent wage increases.

Weekly Events Calendar

Unions Local - remaining July meeting times.  For more info on Unions Local, click here [20].

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Unions Nelson special meeting
Fri 4 July, 4pm
Café Affair, Trafalgar Street
Carl.Horn@ndu.org.nz [21]

Unions Waikato
Thur July 10, 5.15 pm
Trade Union Centre, 34 Harwood Street, Hamilton.
rob.george@nzei.org.nz [22]   
Also: "Political Jargon Busting" seminar Thursday 7 August at 5.30 at the Trade Union Centre.

Unions Tauranga
Mon July 14, 4pm 
Seafarers Centre, Hull Rd, Mt Maunganui. 
garry.parsloe@munz.org.nz [23]

Unions Otago
Monday July 14, 4.30pm
NZNO, Level 2, 7 Crawford St, Dunedin
glendaa@nzno.org.nz [24]

Unions Canterbury
Tues July 15, 4pm
TUC, 199 Armagh Street, Christchurch
karena.brown@epmu.org.nz [25]  

Unions Auckland
Thur July 17, 4pm 
Trades Hall, 147 Gt Nth Rd.
garry.parsloe@munz.org.nz [23]

Unions Manawatu
Friday July 25, 3pm.
PSA House, 41-47 King St, Palmerston North
john.shennan@psa.org.nz [26] 

Unions Northland
Tues July 29, 5pm
TUC, 7 First Ave, Whangarei
garry.parsloe@munz.org.nz [23]

Other Events and Campaigns

Unions Wanganui is supporting this event to celebrate Nelson Mandela's 90th birthday.  Unions Wanganui contact: Kaye.Hearfield@ndu.org.nz [27] 
The Whanganui River Institute
Invites you to join us in celebrating Nelson Mandela's 90th Birthday
Friday 18 July 2008, 6pm 
Sustainable Whanganui Environment Centre
38 Taupo Quay, Wanganui
RSVP 348 8363 or 348 7478

Unions Wellington - First Friday Drinks
The regular monthly get together
After work, Friday July 4th
Brix Bar, Abel Tasman Hotel
Cnr.Willis & Dixon Streets

Inaugural AUT Annual Public Employment Relations Lecture
Speaker: Trevor Mallard
TOPIC: ‘The future outlook for employment relations in New Zealand’
TIME: 3:00-4:00pm, Tuesday 22nd July 2008
VENUE:  AUT Business School, Room 711, 42 Wakefield Street, Auckland
Please RSVP to Serena Gent (serena.gent@aut.ac.nz [28]) by Friday 18th July.

CTU Meetings, Training

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Maori Models of Organising - Nga Momo Whakaritenga
6 courses commencing in July across the country. Details will be advised closer to the time, but early enquiries to helent@nzctu.org.nz [30] or 09-303-9018

Workplace Productivity Challenge Workshop
There is no charge to attend the Productivity Challenge which is an EREL-approved course. Financial assistance is available for travel, wage reimbursement (if not on EREL or other leave) and other associated costs. There are places available in the following workshops - Register now for one of these workshops:
- Friday 11 July, 9 am - 4.30 pm, Mangere East South Auckland
- Tuesday 15 July, 9 am - 4.30 pm, Christchurch
- Friday 18 July, 9 am - 4.30 pm, Wellington Central
Dates for 2008 workshops and Registration forms for these workshops are on the CTU website. If you wish to register interest in a future workshop please tell us your name and location and details of how to contact you. We will cater to demand and arrange something to suit you if you cannot find a location that suits you in our current schedule.
Email Sandy - productivity@nzctu.org.nz [31].
Check out the WPEP website for more information: http://union.org.nz/workplaceproductivity.html [32]
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