Welcome to the September edition of Unite News for members and supporters. To change your subscription details use the links at the top or bottom of this email.
Lines Engineers fight against Telecom's corporate greed
Unite members have been out this week supporting the over 1000 Lines Engineers on strike after Telecom and their contractor Visionstream are trying to force 700 of them to become "dependent contractors" rather than employees. This means they will have to buy and maintain their own tools (costing up to $60,000) and yet have no guaruntee of ongoing work. The union movement is rallying behind these workers because, if Telecom is successful, hundreds of thousands of other workers may find their jobs turned into similar contracts.
EPMU national industry organiser Joe Gallagher says the lines engineers' fight is more than just a challenge to a radical change to their employment:
"This goes to the heart of what it means to be an employee and a union member. Telecom is trying to strip away every protection and right they have as an employee and trying to force them to sign up to a contract that an independent commercial barrister says places heavy burdens on the engineers and gives all the control to Telecom and its contractor, Visionstream. If Telecom succeeds with this, New Zealand industrial relations goes backwards 150 years. That's how bad this is."
To add insult to injury Telecom this week announced that CEO Paul Reynolds will receive $5 million this year.
More on the dispute and Matt McCarten's Herald on Sunday column on the dispute..
How can I help?
You can:
- Call 0900 STAND TALL to make a $10 donation to the support fund.
- Make a donation at any BNZ branch or by online transfer to this account:
02-0568-0177685-00,
Reference: Telco
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Start fundraising on your site – for more information call 0800 1 UNION.
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Email Telecom CEO Paul Reynolds (the $5 million dollar man) at paul.reynolds@telecom.co.nz. to tell him to get Visionstream to come to the table
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Show your support by ringing talkback, talking to your friends and workmates and writing letters to the editor about this dispute and what it means for Kiwi workers.
For more information you can visit the campaign site here.
Tougher regulation of temping agencies needed
Unite Union is calling for tougher regulation of temping agencies and greater protection for temporary employees after a call centre worker was sacked via text message for asking for a couple of days extra time off to attend to duties at a close relatives tangi.
A young female call centre employee engaged by the Kelly Services temporary employment agency to work in the south Auckland call centre of Sky Television was told not to return to work after telling her Supervisor she needed additional time off to attend a relatives tangi out of town. She had been working full time at Sky Television continuously for 6 months.
Kelly’s claim that because the worker was only on “assignment” at Sky Television they don’t have to have justifiable reasons under the law to terminate her employment at Sky Television. Because the worker remained technically employed by Kelly’s they argue that there is no legal claim for unjustifiable dismissal.
“But this worker lost her job” said Unite National Director Mike Treen. “She lost income. She was disadvantaged. She had no opportunity to explain why she had to stay at the Tangi an extra two days. Her employment status means she has far fewer rights than regularly employed Sky Television workers... more
Investigations and Disciplinaries
Sometimes it is not clear when you are being asked in “for a chat” or an “investigation meeting” or a “disciplinary meeting” and if you need representation.
If it is just for a chat (ie over being late a few times recently) then you should probably take a support person but you shouldn’t need formal representation. If you are told that the meeting is an investigation into some alleged misconduct at your company then you need to take care. If it is a genuine investigation into something that the company needs more information about (ie someone dealing drugs on the premises) then we should cooperate. But we should always take a support person/witness or union delegate.
The meeting ceases to be just an investigation as soon as there is a specific allegation against a worker. When that happens the company should put the allegation in writing, explain the possible consequences, and your right to have representation and a support person at any meeting. We then have the right to see all the evidence the company wants to use against us. We also have the right to investigate the alleged misconduct ourselves and interview people if needed.
A disciplinary meeting is still part of an investigation because the company should not have pre-judged the outcome. They must come with open minds and be ready to consider all explanations and carry out further investigation if needed.
Minimum Breaks - It's the law
Up until this week some workers at Hoyts cinemas have been employed on the minimum 3 hour shift there and not giving them a 15 minute paid break. Christchurch Unite organiser Joe Davies pointed out to Hoyts that they were in breach of the law (as of April 1st 2009), and they have now modified their breaks practice. Now any employee working the three hour shift will get a 15 minute paid break.
By law employees are entitled to a minimum of:
- one 10-minute paid rest break if their work period is 2 hours or more but not more than 4 hours
- one 10-minute paid rest break and one unpaid 30-minute meal break if their work period is more than 4 hours but not more than 6 hours
- two 10-minute paid rest breaks and one unpaid 30-minute meal break if their work period is more than 6 hours but not more than 8 hours.
These requirements begin over again if an employee’s work period is more than 8 hours.
A.G.M.Reminders
As in past years there will be three AGM meetings for Unite:
- Wellington: 16th September, 2.30pmat theToi P?neke Arts Centre,
61 - 69 Abel Smith Street, Te Aro.
- Christchurch: 17th September, 3pm at the Trade Union Centre, 199 Armagh Street, Christchurch
- Auckland: 23rd September, 3pm at at St Columba Centre, 40 Vermont Street, Ponsonby
AGENDA
1. Welcome
2. Apologies
3. Minutes of 2008 AGM & Matters Arising
4. President's Report
5. Secretary’s Report
6. 2008-09 Financial Report
7. Constitutional Amendments - Report from Executive, including amendments & voting (section by section)
8. Election of Management Committee
9. Other member remits
10. General Business
Nominations for the following Officers and Management Committee members to be elected at the AGM meetings are now open:
- President
- Vice President
- Secretary
- 3 at large members
- 2 Trustees
- 2 Auckland Reps
- 1 Wellington Rep
- 1 South Island Rep
Nominations forms can be downloaded here (159KB PDF file) or are available from the Unite national office. Nominations must be received by post or fax by 5pm on the 11th September 2009.
Unite National Office
phone: 0800 2 UNITE Fax: 09 846 9509
email: support@unite.org.nz web: www.unite.org.nz
postal address: PO Box 7175, Wellesley St, Auckland
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Can 700 Davids beat a corporate Goliath?
 A classic class battle between Corporate Greed and Organised Labour is under way. On the corporate side we have the giant Telecom determined to maximise its profits and on the workers' side is the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU). Less than two months ago, Telecom announced it was ending its two biggest network engineering contracts and told the workers that they would only keep their jobs if they transferred to a new company, Visionstream, which has set up shop next to Telecom's corporate headquarters....read more of Matt's latest Herald on Sunday column.Read Matt's previous columns here
Check it out
Drop the Rate Mate!
Ever wondered why so many people have to carry two cellphones to be able to text and talk to all their mates? Unite has got in behind a campaign to stop Telecom and Vodafone’s rip-off charges. The campaign is called “Drop the Rate, Mate!” and it’s in support of a Commerce Commission draft recom-mendation demanding the Government step in to stop the Telecom and Vodafone MTR rip off urgently. An MTR is the fee charged when you call or text someone on a different network. MTRs are far too high in New Zealand. The Commerce Commission has found that New Zealand’s high MTRs mean Kiwis currently pay far more for their telephone services than consumers in other countries – and many of us need two phones to avoid the rip off. As much as $2.5 billion has been transferred from fixed-line consumers to Telecom and Vodafone over the last decade and Vodafone’s global CEO is on record as saying that if all countries were like New Zealand he could retire early...more
here. SEA-Unite News
Download the latest SEA-Unite newsletter here (321KB PDF file)
....view previous SEA-Unite newsletters here.
Security News 
Download the latest Unite Security News here (283KB PDF file)
Unite in the media
Read Unite Organiser John Minto's latest blog Frontline at www.stuff.co.nz:
A boil on the country's backside
Read John's previous columns here
Contact Unite
Website: www.unite.org.nz
National Office
phone: 0800 2 UNITE
Fax: 09 846 9509
email: support@unite.org.nz
postal address:
PO Box 7175
Wellesley St
Auckland
Northland/Auckland Office
phone: 09 845 2132
address:
6A Western Springs Road
Morningside
Auckland
email: support@unite.org.nz
Waikato/Bay of Plenty
Jared Phillips
mobile: 029 494 9863
email: jared@unite.org.nz
Wellington & Marlborough Office
phone: 04 384 2946
Matt Jones
mobile: 029 201 3837
email:matthew@unite.org.nz
Christchurch
Joe Davies
mobile: 029 201 3859
email: joe@unite.org.nz
Unite Organisers & Staff
Click here for the contact details of all Unite Organisers and staff. |
