A July 2013 post by Helen Kelly was about Daniel Rockhouse who survived the Pike River Mine disaster, and then rescued Russell Smith. Yesterday Daniel Rockhouse got a bravery award. Read Kelly’s 2013 post here.
How can young unemployed people get help in finding a job, when they have been trying to get one for some time?
The smug middle class National voter seems oblivious to how close they are to financial hardship…
The UK Green Party is gaining in popularity as many people turn away from the 3 established parties. The radical left Syriza party in Greece could possibly gain power in their election – what powerful international right wing forces would then be unleashed?
A new report shows that Steven Joyce’s MBIE fiefdom is failing miserably. Meanwhile the MBIE is under fire for the major cost blow out of the Sky City Casino deal – another deal with Joyce’s imprints all over it.
The Meatworkers Union today launch a campaign for Jobs That Count – to try to get better conditions for these marginalised workers who face it all – seasonal work, dangerous jobs, casual and zero hours contracts and anti-union pressure.
On RNZ this morning PSA National Secretary Richard Wagstaff criticised Bill English for his misleading rhetoric about rises in “average wages”. NZ’s income and wealth gaps have increased in recent decades. The lowest income remain low; the top earners get big salary increases.
Colin James has an excellent piece on the housing market. Simon Collins has a piece on the implications on young renters. Meanwhile, a number of other big problems are being ignored by National as well.
Another day of shame for the New Zealand Government. as they march us in lockstep…….
Towards the sort of police State we used to fight.
The second annual Child Poverty Monitor was released today. bsprout on Local Bodies on poverty and inequalities in Invercargill, “provides a good snapshot of New Zealand society”.
Another example of a bad employer unfairly docking a worker’s pay. But this worker was a union member…
The text of a speech delivered by Andrew Little this morning
Looks like exploiting petrol station workers by docking their pay for circumstances beyond their control was just the tip of the iceberg of this kind of behaviour.
Andrea Vance has written an informative article about Andrew Little. In it, among other things, we learn that Little remembers exactly which side he was on during the 1981 Springbok rugby tour.
In which I ponder my 2c on the leadership race, and the path ahead for Labour and the unions…
Zero hour contracts, where an employee’s work hours are determined solely at the whim of the employer, are becoming increasingly common. The implications for the fight against poverty are dire.
We often look to the first Labour Government for core left wing values, & a political way forward. As well as massively restructuring of the NZ economy, work, welfare & housing, that Government aimed to restructure NZ culture & to combat capitalist-dominated popular culture.
Thousands of people protested and marched around the country against the secret and anti-democratic TPPA negotiations. Reports & pics. Updated
I/S at No Right Turn on the Pike River decision.
Workers have lost the statutory right to meal breaks and smokos. Equal Employment Opportunities (EEO) Commissioner Jackie Blue – who happens to be an ex Nat MP – pulls no punches in setting out the consequences.
The Dairy Workers Union has officially endorsed Andrew Little’s bid for the Labour leadership.
While shepherding through horrendous housing changes and removing workers’ rights – and hiding from Dirty Politics – John Key needs a big “look over there!”
In its first term, National was very careful to be incremental – Key hung to the middle, chipping away carefully at workers’ rights […]
Labour hopes to collect signatures for this petition over Labour Weekend…
Today is a day to celebrate the rights hard won by workers and unions, past and present. There’s a reason it’s called “Labour Day” not “Free Market Day”…
JAmooches continues their analysis of the effects of the Employment Relations Amendment Bill. Today the focus is on the provisions that negate the requirement for the parties to act in good faith bargaining, in particular for being able to conclude collective agreements.
The Mangere Labour Electorate Committee is planning an interesting event on Labour Day in Auckland to commemorate the contributions of three different people to the Labour movement.
The EPMU have just announced they’re endorsing Andrew Little for Labour leader.
We need a new green left direction, now and for the future. A future Labour-Green-Mana coalition government could provide such a direction. The original NZ Values Party Manifesto provides an important Blueprint.
Excellent piece by Bernard Hickey in The Herald this morning.
All the best to the ANZ staff who are on strike today.
Rental housing remains unaffordable for many. The problem is the greed of investors & speculators, supported by a culture in which housing investment is seen as a way to individual prosperity.
Our guest poster has a look at the Employment relations Amendment Bill that National will attempt to sneak through during Labour’s leadership primary. This bill is clearly targeted at those employees who are most vulnerable. It reinforces the Nat’s slow and steady but effective chipping away of employee’s rights and will really resonate with its core constituency
Expect to see a lot of drastic rightwing policies this term as John Key redefines the term “centre ground.”
