IRD Staff To Rally Friday Over Breakdown

“Inland Revenue Department staff intend to take their message to the public on Friday (23rd April) in a first attempt to persuade the IRD to change its position,” said Martin Cooney, Organiser of the National Union of Public Employees (NUPE). NUPE is one of three Unions representing IRD staff nationally.

“NUPE members are taking action over IRD forcing unwilling staff members to work outside their normal work,” said Martin Cooney. “IRD’s refusal to pay an additional duties allowance to staff doing tasks outside their normal work is the underlying cause of the problem. Such payments would normally produce enough volunteers.”

“Our members are also still angered at the unfairness of the recent pay offer made to staff. They want to negotiate fairer rates so that all IRD staff in teams get the 8.8% that Team Leaders receive,” said Martin Cooney.

“Our members think that IRD should consider the consequences of paying their staff peanuts,” said Martin Cooney. “Recent news reports indicated that at least one team leader does understand and is already handing out the monkey masks.”

“Friday’s midday rally starting in Christchurch is the first step in an escalating plan of action that will affect services to the public if we are unable to persuade IRD managers to take our concerns seriously,” said Martin Cooney

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Gordon Campbell: On the Sony cyber attack

Given the layers of meta-irony involved, the saga of the Sony cyber attack seemed at the outset more like a snarky European art film than a popcorn entry at the multiplex.

Yet now with (a) President Barack Obama weighing in on the side of artistic freedom and calling for the US to make a ‘proportionate response’quickly followed by (b) North Korea’s entire Internet service going down, and with both these events being followed by (c) Sony deciding to backtrack and release The Interview film that had made it a target for the dastardly North Koreans in the first place, then ay caramba…the whole world will now be watching how this affair pans out. More>>