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Justice workers striking nationwide for the day

PSA Media Release
November 16, 2009
For immediate use

Justice workers striking nationwide for the day

Justice Ministry staff, who collect fines and work at courts and tribunals throughout the country, are walking off the job at 10am this morning and striking for the rest of the day.

The strike involves Justice Ministry workers who belong to the Public Service Association.

“Our members will not accept being paid less than rest of the public service for running something as essential as our justice system,” says PSA national secretary Richard Wagstaff.

“Nor will we continue to accept the Ministry’s unjust pay system that’s responsible for their underpayment.”

“Today’s day-long strike is their fifth nationwide strike since they began a campaign of action for a fair pay system and to close the pay between them and other public service workers.”

“Striking for a day is an escalation of their action and shows how determined to PSA members are to have a fair pay system and to bridge their pay gap with the rest of the public service.” says Richard Wagstaff.

The Ministry’s own figures show that on average Justice workers are paid 6.3% below the pay median for the public service. The under payment is even worse for many Justice staff. The Ministry’s 1200 court registry officers are paid 9.25% below the public service median for the work they do.

Most court registry officers are paid between $39,600 and $46,600 a year. Their highest pay rate is $53,600. Most court registry support officers are paid between $29,500 and $35,000.Their highest pay rate is $40,000.

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As well as nationwide strikes, Justice workers are staging local strikes in which staff at individual courts are walking off the job for varying lengths of time.

Last Friday (Nov 13) a local strike closed the court in Wairoa from 10am for the rest of the day. Justice staff in Gisborne also went on strike from 10am for the rest of the day on Friday. There were other local strikes last week at courts in Kaikohe, Palmerston North, Napier and in Auckland at the Waitakere and Manukau courts.

“This action is shutting down court sittings throughout the country and disrupting other Justice services,” says Richard Wagstaff. “These workers don’t want to inconvenience the public but their pay problems are long standing ones and they’re determined to have them addressed.”

“The union is simply asking the Ministry to engage in meaningful negotiations to develop a just pay system and to close the pay gap with other public service workers. We’re prepared to look at closing this pay gap in stages to make it affordable for the Ministry.”

“It was the PSA and staff that invited the Ministry to work with us to reduce their costs by finding ways of working more efficiently, identifying and eliminating wasteful spending and improving productivity. This would offset the cost of closing the pay gap and implementing a fair pay structure.”

The Ministry says it wants to return to negotiations and settle the dispute but fails to back this up by making a new offer and by making a commitment to developing a just pay system. Instead the Ministry recycles an old offer that fails to address its pay problems and that staff continue to reject by taking industrial action.”

“The Ministry has to stop burying its head in the sand and recognise that its current actions are alienating the staff it needs to work with to speed up the flow of cases through our justice system.”

“For instance the Ministry wants to extend court sitting hours but its response to the current action is burning off the goodwill of staff needed to successfully implement such changes,” says Richard Wagstaff.

ENDS

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