Fairfax wage freeze claims incorrect - EPMU

July 2, 2009
Media Release

Fairfax wage freeze claims incorrect - EPMU

Claims by management at the Fairfax-owned Nelson Mail that a wage freeze has been imposed on staff at the paper are incorrect, says the Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union.

The wage freeze claims were made in the Nelson Mail by the newspaper’s management, and follow similar claims by management at the Timaru Herald, also owned by Fairfax.

EPMU senior national industrial officer Paul Tolich says pay rises for union members will be decided across the negotiating table.

“Under New Zealand law, wages and conditions are set by good faith bargaining, not by management decree.

“While Fairfax has indicated its desire for a wage freeze, any decision on wage increases is subject to collective negotiations between the company and its unionised staff and cannot be unilaterally imposed by management.

“As a union we’re seeing an increasing number of companies claiming in the media that they’ve put in a wage freeze before bargaining has even begun. These statements are both factually incorrect and are potentially in breach of good faith obligations.

“The EPMU has no plans to agree to a wage freeze in this year’s wage round. Our members in the newspaper industry have had to cope with the same cost of living increases as everyone else and Fairfax is still a profitable company.

“If Fairfax wants to make an argument for wage restraint they should bring it to the bargaining table rather than trying to issue edicts through the media.”

Further information about the EPMU’s position on bargaining in a recession is available in our short film Crunch Time, which is available at http://www.epmu.org.nz/crunch-time/.

ENDS

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