Minimum wage increase useless without end to zero hours
Wednesday, 25 February 2015, 12:12 pm Press Release: Unite Union
Minimum wage increase useless without end to zero hours
Unite Union has welcomed the 50 cent an hour increase in
the minimum wage but says that no matter what level the
minimum wage reached it is of little benefit unless it is
combined with an end to zero hour contracts.
Unite is
calling on the government to set a target to have the
minimum wage progressively increased from its current level
of about 50% of the average wage to two-thirds of the
average - which was the standard in New Zealand in the
past.
The entire benefit of a pay rise can be lost for
someone on around 20 hours a week if they lose only one
hour's pay. We will taking a claim for guaranteed hours to
be the norm in the negotiations this year with fast food
companies and others who have most staff working under what
have been dubbed zero-hour contracts because they have no
guaranteed minimum number of
hours.
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