AFFCO appeal

Written By: - Date published: 12:50 pm, May 11th, 2012 - 18 comments
Categories: Unions - Tags: , ,

From CTU Press release:

CTU President Helen Kelly is today making a nationwide appeal for people to support the Talley’s AFFCO workers who are experiencing significant hardship at the hands of Talley’s AFFCO who have locked out hundreds of workers for over 2 months now.

Helen Kelly said “this is causing extreme hardship for these workers and their families, there are over 5000 kids directly affected by their parents and grandparents not being able to work. We are calling on people to make a donation to support these workers and their whanau.”

“People will have seen the Talley’s AFFCO workers on Campbell Live and Close Up this week – they are hard working, loyal families who just want to work. Affco want to starve these families into submission.”

“There are already some funds coming in from unions and the public, especially from towns where there is an AFFCO plant and people can see the effect on their community. There are also benefit entitlements for some workers. Unions are holding collections on jobs around the country, but there is a desperate need for more help.”

Helen Kelly said “you can help support families directly by making a donation.”

Donations can be made to CTU Disputes Fund at Kiwibank, Wellington (Branch), NZCTU DISPUTES FUND (Account holder), 38 9007 0894028 08 (Account).

Funds will be disseminated directly to the workers and used for essential food items and bills.

18 comments on “AFFCO appeal ”

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  1. Te Reo Putake 1
    12 May 2012 at 9:58 am

    Talley’s want to insert an interesting clause in the agreement. It gives them an unfettered right to illegally sack a union worker any time they feel like it without penalty!
     
    The clause would allow the company to fire people and disguise it as redundancy on the grounds of irreconcilable differences between them and the employer, or them and other workers, or when “the interests of the employer would be best served by terminating the union member’s employment, not withstanding that the union member has not been guilty of any conduct or omission that would justify dismissal on the grounds of misconduct or poor performance”.
     

    • Richard 1.1
      13 May 2012 at 1:11 pm

      So the employee can give a weeks notice and just leave or if so inclined just walk out at anytime with the only consequence being losing a weeks pay. Not saying what you have outlined is where we want to be going, but you need to consider all Talleys is asking for is the same termination rights an employee has. Hard to argue against if you are seeking fairness.

      • Mariana Pineda 1.1.1
        13 May 2012 at 8:27 pm

        You seem to believe that there is equity in an employment relationship. I assure you that there is not.

  2. TightyRighty 2
    12 May 2012 at 12:13 pm

    They can always go back to work with a 5% pays rise.

    • felix 2.1
      12 May 2012 at 12:27 pm

      Yes that’s definitely what’s going on here. Talleys just want to pay the workers more, but the workers stubbornly refuse the raise.

      I have the same problem whenever I try to give people money. I always end up having to lock them out of their jobs and starve their families until they cave in and accept my generosity.

    • burt 2.2
      12 May 2012 at 12:44 pm

      Imagine… a 5% rise and no union fees to pay….

      from Stuff: Talleys immovable in dispute

      The union was once a dominant force on the New Zealand industrial landscape. But since the loss of compulsory membership under the Employment Contracts Act in 1991 its influence has gradually declined.

      Since 1991…. they still cling to the outdated notion of fighting the man…..

      • Colonial Viper 2.2.1
        12 May 2012 at 12:57 pm

        Outdated? The Man is acting more a bitch than ever before, so a fight is what The Man is gonna get.

        Fight!

        Fight!

        Fight!

      • Adele 2.2.2
        12 May 2012 at 1:53 pm

        Burt

        Why is it an outdated notion – recent weeks have shown that fighting the man is as relevant today than ever before. The Ports of Auckland is a prime example of a collective and unionised workforce overcoming the ‘man.’

        The notion that should be consigned to the slop-bucket of failed industrial thinking is the mentality that gets a ‘woody’ starving labour into acquiescence.

        • burt 2.2.2.1
          12 May 2012 at 4:38 pm

          A ‘woody’ you say… I wonder if the union reps get a ‘woody’ when they take the hard earned fees from low paid workers and donate them to highly paid politicians so that the highly paid politicians don’t need to spend their own money advertising themselves ?

          • Acting Up 2.2.2.1.1
            12 May 2012 at 7:16 pm

            No Burt, they don’t. Wrong again.

          • felix 2.2.2.1.2
            12 May 2012 at 8:25 pm

            Yeah that’s unionism for you, it’s all about screwing low paid workers out of their money.

            Oh and ruining burt’s holidays in the 1970s. And either controlling or being controlled by the Labour Party, depending what day it is in burt’s world.

            And everyone knows all this, apart from the union members, but that’s just because the tricksy union bosses trick them with consistently higher wages and better conditions than their non-union counterparts.

      • Frank Macskasy 2.2.3
        12 May 2012 at 9:14 pm

        Yeah, Burt. Everyone should just surrender and take whatever is offered. Except you, of course. I doubt you’d just roll over, eh?)

      • Rodel 2.2.4
        12 May 2012 at 10:22 pm

        Burt you are a sick person…seek help

      • Buzz Worley 2.2.5
        13 May 2012 at 6:31 pm

        Enjoy your weekend? You’re welcome. Have a tea break? You’re welcome. got some work rights in legislation despite any government? You’re welcome. And many more… stop, stop, you’re making us blush.
        Proud to be Union
        Buzz

    • Frank Macskasy 2.3
      12 May 2012 at 9:15 pm

      Tighty… “and let them eat cake”, as well?

      5% AND cake?! Wow, life is good!!

    • Mariana Pineda 2.4
      13 May 2012 at 8:28 pm

      But the boss wants to pick and choose so how do those not chosen go back to work again?

  3. Jenny 3
    12 May 2012 at 3:28 pm

    Unions were strong in this country long before they were compulsory.

    It is not the loss of compulsory membership that weakened the unions as much as the legal proscriptions against the right to strike that were written into the ECA and continued under the ERA.

    This banning of almost all industrial action except around very narrow grounds involving your direct negotiation of pay and conditions with your employer (only), has seen a decided shift in the balance of power to the employers. In the past, if an employer were to lock out his workforce in response they would be targeted with solidarity actions by the rest of the union movement.

    Now the best workers can do, is a whip round to try and feed the children of the affected workers.

    When it comes to a battle of workers donations vs. the deep pockets of an employer like Talleys, it is a ‘no contest’. It will be long time before the Talleys in their mansions will find that they don’t have enough money to feed their family.

  4. Meagan 4
    13 May 2012 at 2:54 pm

    Talleys are corporate thugs… Boycott the products and go hard the workers…