Drivers give it back to the boss

August 8, 2008 by

– Nick Kelly

Bruce Emson, CEO of NZ Bus, did his “travelling road show” at the Kilbirnie depot last Monday. His mission was to tell us drivers his vision for “our” company, but also to get feedback from the people who are on the ground.

So midway through his bullshit company presentation Bruce goes, “Look, I’m sick of talking, I want to know if this a good place to work at the moment.” To which the drivers and workshop workers replied with a resounding “NO!”.

A bit taken aback, Bruce then replied, “Oh, OK, well actually I knew that already. So guys, tell me what’s wrong with this job.”

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Workers in Struggle Tagged With:

Casualisation: real jobs and con jobs

August 7, 2008 by

– Don Franks

For those of us in the working class, few things are more important than having a real job. A real job produces stable predictable earnings. It pays enough for us to support ourselves and our dependants, with a bit left over for some luxuries, savings and fun. A real job is also a big part of our social life. For many people their workplace is a sort of secondary family; in some cases the community of an individual’s job provides their main social connections. In every case a proper job gives us a feeling of social worth, a feeling that we belong, and that we count for something because others count on us.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Economics, NZ Labour Party, Poverty in New Zealand, Union movement, Workers in Struggle Tagged With:

Jobs should come before profits

July 24, 2008 by

– Workers Party Press Release

As the recession bites, workers are again carrying the heaviest burden.

The layoffs just announced at Silver Fern Farms’ Belfast plant are another sign that the current parties have nothing left to offer workers. The Workers Party thinks jobs for all should come before profits for private companies and supports action by workers to keep their jobs, including occupations of workplaces threatened with closure.

As a first step, the Workers Party of New Zealand will abolish GST because it is a regressive tax that hits workers particularly hard.

We are launching our Christchurch Electoral campaign at 7pm on Monday July 28th. The campaign launch will be held in the WEA at 59 Gloucester St.

The Workers Party is standing two candidates in Christchurch electorates: secondary school teacher and former meat worker Paul Hopkinson in Christchurch East and retail worker and student Byron Clark in Christchurch Central. We also have candidates standing in Auckland and Wellington.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: 2008 Election, Fighting Redundancies Tagged With:

The Kind Governor

July 17, 2008 by

– Don Franks

(wsws.org commentary on the economy: “spokesmen for the ruling elite have been quick to demand workers tighten their belts and lower their wage demands, despite the steep increase in the cost of living. Reserve Bank Governor Bollard first issued the call in early June, bluntly saying that any “over-exuberance” when it came to wage negotiations this year would meet with a response from the central bank, probably in the form of interest rate rises.”)

Prices are going up,
You know the drill
We’re going to be hungry and feel the chill
So
How do our societies experts
Advise those with blue collars on our opshop shirts?

Reserve Bank Governor Bollard says wage claims should not show “over exuberance”
Or they’d invite a swift kick in the pants
A bit of exuberance then, must be alright
A dose first thing each morning
And one more again at night

Myself, I’ve never had an exuberant wage claim
All the ones that I remember were pretty much the same
Small, infrequent and a lot less than I needed
Each time I struck, negotiated, asked or pleaded

Exuberant means “prolific”, “overflowing”, “luxuriant”,
“Abundant.”
The opposite to falling back or being made redundant
Ordinarily exuberant will do me very well, so thanks, I”ll take it
“Over exuberance” would make me sick, without the need to fake it.
So let us raise a cheer for Governor Bollard of the Bank!
And perish all suspicion that he isn’t being frank.

Filed Under: Economics, Workers in Struggle Tagged With:

WP leaflet on increased road user charges

July 4, 2008 by

Below is the text of a leaflet distributed by members of the Workers Party Auckland branch at the protest earlier today by truck drivers against the recently announced increase in road user charges.

Independence from the bosses – A workers’ response required in the campaign against rising cost of living

The boss class is to blame for the recent barrage of rising costs that is hitting working people in New Zealand and internationally. The following leaflet puts forward the Workers Party’s basic position on the increase to road user chargers.

Major companies are required to pay within the market system Should the major companies pay for the costs of maintaining the roads? We think that under a market system the major companies should be forced to pay but this should not be at the expense of their employees’ wages and conditions which such companies have been driving down for decades. If they were not called to pay, then the public would be bearing costs incurred while the companies make profits. However, it should also be understood that, within a market system, the employers’ profits come from the work that their employees do for them. Therefore, even if the companies lose profits, the main issue is that workers are able to increase real incomes.

[Read more…]

Filed Under: Campaign Against GST, NZ Labour Party, Workers in Struggle Tagged With:
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