23 September 2009

For immediate release

Union Condemns Sticker Ban
 
The Service and Food Workers Union has condemned the action of Parliament’s Speaker Lockwood Smith in refusing to allow a “Cleaners are worth more” sticker to be tabled in the House.
 
Parliament’s cleaners, employed by a private contractor, had asked Labour MP Darien Fenton to table one of their stickers to bring Parliament’s attention to their very low wage rates.
 
When Ms Fenton requested permission to table the sticker Lockwood Smith told her that it was “demeaning to the House” and would not allow her to do so.
 
SFWU National Secretary John Ryall said that it was demeaning for parliamentary cleaners to be employed on five cents an hour above the minimum wage when Ministerial Services had valued the cleaning of the Minister of Finance’s house at $20.00 an hour.
 
“While the parliamentary cleaners might be invisible to most MPs because of the very late hours that they work, they are worthy of the same respect that is given to other parliamentary workers,” said John Ryall.
 
“While it might not be conventional to table a sticker in parliament, the message on the sticker is deadly serious and the cleaners will be disappointed in the Speaker’s decision.”
 
ENDS