National: no love for the workers UNITE FOR A LIVING WAGE THIS SATURDAY 13th.

Whanganui:
Assemble at Majestic Square 11.30am

Palmerston North:
East side of the Square
(outside High Flyers) 11am

Unite Union is campaigning for the minimum wage to be lifted to $15 per hour and then indexed at two-thirds of the average wage.

Prime Minister John Key has announced that the minimum wage will be raised by only 0.25c on April 1, 2010. This has angered low-paid workers throughout the country.

In response Unite has announced protests at National Party offices around the country and we ask all those who care about low-paid workers to attend and let the government know how you and your workplace/family/community feel about low wages.

In Whanganui the protest will gather at Majestic Square at 11.30am.

Palmerston North is the only city in New Zealand without any National MPs :-) so we want lots of volunteers for a very visible signature gathering effort on the Square (gather on the east side outside High Flyers at 11am).

For more information contact Gerard on 021 029 40345 or gerard@unite.org.nz

You can find more info at the facebook event page here and on Unite's website.

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

Nationwide protests and pickets will target National MPs offices this Saturday, as anger spreads across the country at planned GST increases and a low minimum wage.

The wave of action has been called by the Campaign for a Living Wage, which has gathered nearly 100,000 signatures supporting a Citizens Initiated Referendum to raise the minimum wage now to $15 per hour, a move supported by over 61% of Kiwis according to polls.

"The working poor are not stupid, and if the Government continue to attack us, National MPs shouldn't be surprised they'll be targeted for public shaming and ridicule in their local communities" said Campaign Organiser Joe Carolan.

"First the government threw 25 cents at those struggling to get by on the minimum wage, and now, a week later, they say they’ll hike GST up another 2.5%. This will mean that the half a million workers earning less than $15 per hour will be worse off, not to count the 150,000 dependent on benefits".

"This Valentine's Day, we thought John Key was just a cheap date. Tax cuts for workers - yeah, right- this government is putting the boot into the poorest workers whilst giving tax cuts to its rich mates. There is no Love for the workers from this Government.

Pickets so far in: Auckland, Hamilton, Dunedin, Oamaru, Waitakere, Nelson, Invercargill, Whangerai, Rotorua, Christchurch

Get in touch with the $15 campaign

Send a text to 029 445 5702 or email to sign up as a working class hero.

Join the campaign on facebook and become Living Wage's friend.

Forward this email to your friends and get them to sign up for the newsletter - just use [FORWARD].

Follow Unite and the campaign on twitter.

Put the $15 an hour web banner on your website or blog - click here.

Order a bulk order of badges (30 cents each) and T-shirts ($15 each) from the Unite office - click here.

Download the petition here .

Click here for more campaign information.

The $15 an hour Campaign for a Living Wage has been initiated by Unite union.

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