Labour takes KFC employment case to HRC
Jacinda ARDERN
Social Development Spokesperson
1 September 2013
MEDIA STATEMENT
Labour takes KFC employment case to
HRC
Labour is requesting the Human Rights
Commission investigate concerns that workers with
disabilities are being restructured out of their jobs at
KFC.
Labour’s Social Development spokesperson
Jacinda Ardern is challenging a policy dubbed “all star
level” staffing that says workers must be capable of
completing all duties.
“These workers were never
hired to complete ‘all duties’. Many have worked
part-time for a number of years on very specific tasks and
been wholly competent.
“I have first hand
experience working with young people with disabilities. In
fact, I trained two people at KFC in these very roles. Each
of them had enormous dedication to their job and the team.
The idea that a policy like this would now put them out of
the job is devastating.
“This catch-all policy is
unfair and unjust. Social responsibility is a guiding
principle for smart business globally. Restaurants in small
towns rely on the engagement of their local communities.
This one-size-fits-all approach won’t go down well with
workers in Greymouth or Oamaru.
“Labour isn’t
going to sit back and see valued workers lose out because of
an arbitrary decision, likely made offshore. We are going to
advocate for local interests and for the disability sector
by challenging this policy,” Jacinda Ardern
said.
ENDS