Unions prepare wave of fair pay sector bids

An avalanche of fair pay applications are expected to be made over the next few months as unions gather momentum to launch bids for better pay for workers under the new fair pay agreement law.

Fair pay agreements set out specific conditions and deals between workers and employers in an industry or occupation, with the regime for establishing them coming into effect next month. They can be triggered by support from 1000 workers or 10% of a workforce.

Many sectors are already prepared to get their applications for fair pay agreements through on December 1.

First Union’s Louisa Jones said bus driver and supermarket retail members wanted to initiate the process and put in applications as soon as possible.

‘‘This is massive. Workers are excited to try and do it.’’

They already had more than 1000 signatures for supermarket workers, she said.

Earlier this month a deal saw Countdown staff receive an average pay rise of 12% over a two-year collective agreement, with the union wanting to see other supermarket workers offered a similar rise.

First Union is working with the

Tramways Union on the bus driver application, with secretary Kevin O’Sullivan saying they would have the numbers to kick off the fair pay process, ‘‘no problem at all’’.

O’Sullivan said a fair pay agreement would have the most impact in the regions and in smaller towns.

E tū began preparing an application for security guards and commercial cleaning workers quickly after the passing of the Fair Pay Agreement legislation at the end of October.

Team leader Sarah Thompson said they were on the way to reaching 1000 signatures for each sector and were looking to initiate agreements early next year.

On a security agreement, Thompson said the union had a ‘‘good working relationship with the New Zealand Security Association and we imagine we will be able to have an FPA before the election’’.

Unite union is leading the fair pay agreement process for the hospitality industry, looking to remedy pay, hours and staffing issues. That includes attempting to make the living wage the standard starting rate, giving all workers guaranteed hours, as well as combatting short staffing issues, national secretary John Crocker said.

Unite would probably lodge its application on December 1.

Education union, the New Zealand

Educational Institute president Liam Rutherford said the organisation expected to start the process for early childhood fair pay agreements ‘‘as soon as we can’’.

Rutherford said they had comfortably passed the 1000 signature mark, but were aiming for 10,000 and to begin in the new year.

National Party workplace relations spokesperson Paul Goldsmith said he was not surprised a lot of sectors were making bids for fair pay agreements, but was ‘‘not yet convinced there’ll be any conclusions before the election’’.

National have promised to repeal the legislation.

Nikki Sumner of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) said each application would be assessed as they were received.

Each must be approved by MBIE before initiating bargaining, and time frames for getting approval may differ.

‘‘MBIE anticipates being able to manage and support more than six proposed FPAs, but . . . there may be some situations where support provision or decision time frames may be impacted.’’

Workplace Relations Minister Michael Wood said he expected it to take about a year to negotiate fair pay agreements, ‘‘with the initial agreements likely to take slightly longer’’.