We nearly got to the end of November before finding out the shape of the new Government. Once the National-Act-New Zealand First coalition details were ironed out, they have certainly hit the ground running. The 100-day plan is bold and already generating some controversy.
Business confidence is up, Fair Pay Agreements will be gone by Christmas and 90-day trial periods will make a come-back. All of this will make for an interesting start to 2024.
Here are the noteworthy events from November, summarised with links included for your light reading.
1. November industrial action
- Fisher & Paykel E tū members have taken further industrial action in the form of picketing and an overtime ban.
- Early-childhood teachers who are members of NZEI and party to the ECE collective agreement, took strike action for the first time ever, citing government funding for this sector is not funded enough.
- Awanui Labs medical lab workers and members of APEX union have taken further 24-hour strike action in support of their wage claim for parity with those employed by the public system.
2. November settlements
- FIRST Union members at Pak n Save in Papakura have settled with an 8% increase and everyone with greater than 12 months service on the Living Wage.
- Senior doctors and dentists agreed to settle in line with the ERAs recommendation from facilitated bargaining. The recommendation then went to members for ratification.
- NZNO & PSA telehealth members at Wakarongorau Aotearoa, have accepted the latest pay offer of 4%.
- FIRST Union members at The Warehouse have signalled their dissatisfaction with their recently settled agreement and the latest in-store promotion for customers.
3. Nurses preparing for 2024 bargaining
NZNO Nurses, working for Te Whatu Ora, have held paid union meetings around the country to talk about the big issues that they want addressed in advance of their agreement expiring in October 2024. They aim to put pressure on the health agency and new government to increase funding to the sector and fix the nursing shortage.
4. Water sector agreement
AWUNZ, E tū & PSA have endorsed a multi-union, multi-employer collective agreement that has been worked on for the past two years with employees across the sector, as well as the Department of Internal Affairs. The intention is to improve water services, overcome critical staff shortages and ensure decent workplaces for everyone working in the industry – technicians, engineers, electricians, administrators, fitters, water reticulation workers, and wastewater treatment operators, local and central government officials, and more.
5. Infometrics Quarterly Economic Monitor
The latest September 2023 release from Infometrics shows jobs growth remains solid and that population growth is benefitting the major urban centres. Spending activity is higher than a year ago, but still being affected by high inflation. This article, and the supporting documentation makes for really interesting insights.