HUTT CITY COUNCIL NEWS RELEASE

24 May 2017

Balanced approach to living wage at Hutt City Council

Hutt City Council has adopted a new Remuneration and Employment Policy reflecting its commitment to paying the living wage while meeting its legal obligations under the Local Government Act 2002 (the Act).

At a full meeting last night, it was agreed Council will pay the living wage where it can be shown this is the most cost-effective way to provide a particular service. This is based on legal advice.

Hutt City Council Chief Executive Tony Stallinger said: "Council is taking a balanced approach to its new Remuneration and Employment Policy.

"Paying the living wage is in line with our commitment to being a good employer, but we also need to address our legal obligations to provide our services in the most cost-effective manner.

"Considering the living wage on a case-by-case basis allows us to meet our commitment to our staff as well as our legal obligation to residents and businesses.

"The job is now to go away and work out how we can establish an assessment for cost-effectiveness so, where possible, the living wage at Hutt City Council can be effective from 1 January 2018.

"It's important to note that our legal advice was that the most cost-effective option does not necessarily equate to the cheapest option. This means we'll be giving consideration to things such as potential productivity increases, morale, performance and Council's ability to attract and retain staff when developing our assessment."

The adoption of the new policy follows Council's instruction to Mr Stallinger in April this year to produce a draft remuneration and employment policy under the Act that addresses paying the living wage to Council employees.

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