Business New Zealand’s statement today that they are refusing to be part of the Fair Pay Agreements' (FPAs) implementation is irresponsible and shows how out of touch they are, said NZEI Te Riu Roa National Secretary, Paul Goulter.

“We support FPAs as they have the potential to improve wages and conditions in sectors and occupations that currently suffer from low-paid and insecure work,” said Mr Goulter.

“If implemented correctly, and there is still some way to go in making sure that happens, we believe FPAs will enourage investment in staff, lift wages and improve conditions for workers, especially those in low paid industries.”

“An example of this is our work to reduce the massive pay disparity that exists in Early Childhood Education (ECE).”

“We have estimated that an ECE teacher who starts their career today will, on average over ten years, have been paid more than $100k less than their kindergarten colleagues unless the Government accelerates pay parity.”

“To address this issue, and help alleviate the critical shortage in ECE teachers, we will be working with Government to put in place a sector-wide FPA that covers all childhood educators.”

© Scoop Media