Policy Area: Industrial Relations

Statement of General Direction:

The industrial relations environment desired by the Parties is one based on fairness, flexibility and neutrality, recognising that the environment plays an important part in achieving high sustainable economic growth rates in New Zealand.

Key Initiatives of Policy:

1. Retain the principle of voluntary unionism and the no strike/no lock-out provision in pursuit of multi-employer collective contracts.
2. Raise the adult minimum wage to $7 from 1 March 1997, and decide whether to increase further towards New Zealand First's objectives of $7.50 per hour from 1 March 1998 following annual review, together with the related below adult minimum rates, in paragraph 3 below.
3. Immediate review of under 20 year old minimum wage rates.
4. Immediate review whether, and how, decisions of the Employment Court and the Court of Appeal with respect to personal grievance and procedural matters under the Act can be codified into legislation.
5. In the meantime, retain the separate jurisdiction of the Employment Court but conduct a formal study of the Court's decisions to establish whether Parliament's intentions have been clearly expressed for the purposes of minimising judicial activism in the employment area.
6. Boost resources of the Employment Tribunal and Employment Court if, following a review, it is found justice is being denied because of delays.
7. Strengthen the ability of bargaining agents to obtain fair access to workplaces by incorporating the relevant case law into the Employment Contracts Act (especially section 12).
8. Introduce the concept of "fair" bargaining into the Employment Contracts Act, by describing areas where compliance is necessary to abide by the principles underlying the Act (eg the obligation to respect the choice of the bargaining agent and not undermine the bargaining process by bypassing the agent).
9. Investigate whether employment casualisation is being used to undermine the development of competition in some industries (eg waterfront) and whether the Commerce Act or the Fair Trading Act provides adequate protection.
10. Fixed term contracts - can be dealt with under item 4.
11. Bring under the umbrella of the Employment Contracts Act closely related legislation such as the Wages Protection Act, Minimum Wage Act and Holidays Act. Each Act brought under the Employment Contracts Act will be reviewed by the Coalition Government and/or a Select Committee before legislation is introduced.
12. Resource ways and means of proactively promoting the rights and responsibilities of employees and employers under the Employment Contracts Act, especially new entrants to the workforce.
13. Retain the Act but keep under continuous review as to security of employment and fairness to employers and employees the Act offers.

Fiscal Implications of this Policy Agreement:

Nil

(All funding proposals subject to being considered within the agreed spending policy parameters.)

Legislative Implications of this Policy Agreement:

As covered abo ve to a number of Acts.