Editorial: Alarm bells
OPINION: The Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs) bill proposed by Government is causing alarm in the farming sector.
Business NZ chief executive Kirk Hope claims the Government will target all sectors with FPAs.
He wants the agriculture sector to join its campaign 'Your Work, Your Way' in opposing the final FPAs regulations passing in Parliament.
Hope told Rural News that the proposed legislation means an FPA will become compulsory once either 10% of the sector workforce or 1000 workers are signed up.
"For the farming sector, say each farm has five workers it will be relatively easy for organisers to reach 1,000 workers.
"It may take a little bit of organising but there are unions and groups who have started mobilising workers to join FPAs."
But Hope points out that the legislation to pass in Parliament soon will let FPAs apply to just about any sector, including the farming sector.
"So, it could certainly be forced on the entire farming sector."
Hope says collective bargaining is currently almost unknown in the farm sector.
"Not being bogged down in collective bargaining has helped contribute to NZ farming's great economic success. It would be a tragedy if a FPA was unleashed on the farming sector."
