The Smarter Way

Fair Pay Agreement(FPA)s are not fair and will not achieve what the Government says they will.

There is a smarter way to achieve better outcomes for Kiwi employees and employers who most need them and crack down on bad employers without taking away people’s rights and breaking international labour laws.

We support the view of the Government’s own officials that a targeted approach is needed.

Here are our three recommended policy changes the Government should make, in place of FPAs:

1. Protect flexible working - make FPAs voluntary

We’re against FPAs – but if they must go ahead, they must be voluntary and not compulsory. Individual employers and employees should have the opportunity to opt-out of them. Voluntary FPAs would at least be more consistent with NZ’s obligations under international law.

2. Target problem industries – limited sector based minimum standards to protect vulnerable workers

Instead of imposing FPAs unnecessarily across all industries, we are focused on achieving better outcomes for the Kiwis who most need them.

As recommended by officials we support the development of a limited set of legally binding sector-based minimum standards for industries where a clear and significant labour market problem has been identified.

As a major employer in some of the industries where issues have been identified, the Government can take a leadership role immediately by committing to best practice employment standards in these sectors.

3. Crack down on employers – beef up enforcement to prosecute those who break the law

We have zero tolerance for poor employers. We must strengthen current enforcement and increase the number of labour inspectors to monitor and enforce the code to protect vulnerable workers. Their powers to access workplaces and work records should also be brought to a level that allows inspectors to better detect inappropriate activity and enforce minimum labour standards.

Sign the open letter