You Break It, You Buy It: Gov’t Must Compensate Greyhound Workers

Greyhound Racing New Zealand (GRNZ) says the Government should not shut down a lawful industry without compensating the people whose livelihoods it is destroying.

“The Minister for Racing can talk about ‘smooth transitions’ and ‘support’, but more than a thousand New Zealanders are losing their jobs, businesses, and life savings, and the Government is refusing to support them financially,” says GRNZ Chief Executive Edward Rennell.

On Herald NOW, Minister for Racing Winston Peters labelled industry participants “sinners” undeserving of taxpayer support. Rennell says the comment lays bare the Minister’s disregard for workers.

“On one hand the Minister says we’re unworthy, then he says we won’t be left to fend for ourselves. Which is it, Minister?”

“You cannot license, regulate, and profit from an industry for decades, and then, when it suits political agendas, shut it down and label the very people you enabled, as unworthy of support,” says Rennell.

He says the Minister’s focus on rehoming dogs and administrative transition structures ignores the human cost.

“Paying for dog food is not compensation.

“Where is the compensation for trainers who built compliant operations, invested in good faith, contributed to the economy, and can’t recoup their investments?”

Rennell says the forced closure is not a market failure — it is a deliberate political decision.

“Where is recognition of the infrastructure and businesses built under Government oversight?”

The select committee process did not change the reality for workers.

“Being allowed to make a submission is not the same as being treated fairly. The outcome was predetermined by party leadership, and the voices of those most affected were ignored.

“Even committee members critical of the Government’s treatment of workers were ignored.”

GRNZ also rejects the Government’s reliance on public polling.

“The survey the Minister cites involved just 817 people, 98% of whom said they knew little or nothing about greyhound racing. Destroying an industry on the basis of a largely uninformed sample is not serious public policy,” says Rennell.

“The survey was commissioned to advocate against greyhound racing, not neutral inquiry.”

GRNZ is calling for fair compensation for the severe impairment suffered by industry participants at the hands of the Government.

"This should include lost income, investment in infrastructure and dogs, and support that matches the scale of disruption," says Rennell.

“Greyhound workers operate under a system approved and permitted by the Government. Compensation is not optional, it is the minimum standard.”

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