CTU Media release

3 March 2009

CTU calls for support for Sealord workers

The Council of Trade Unions today echoed calls from the Service and Food Workers’ Union for greater support for Sealord workers in Nelson, 160 of whom are to lose their jobs through restructuring.

CTU Secretary Peter Conway said: “This is where the difference between good intentions to protect jobs and real action needs to become clear.”

“The Jobs Summit on Friday had a range of proposals for active consideration on how to support firms and workers,” he continued. “Now we need to see if some of those proposals can be applied. There were many people from business, iwi, banks, economic development agencies and regional government at the Summit. The whole point of the exercise was to work collectively to create and retain jobs as well as support workers laid off.”

Peter Conway said the CTU understands that just because there has been a Jobs Summit it does not mean that all commercial considerations for firms are put on hold. But if the Jobs Summit is to be relevant then it needs to make a difference to workers such as those at Sealord facing redundancy.

It is to be hoped, however, that the three week consultation period on the redundancies can be used to explore every possible option to preserve jobs.

ENDS

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