E tū has commissioned a poll which shows strong
opposition to the National-led Government’s proposal to
remove the Living Wage requirement from the updated
procurement rules.
The poll, first
published in the New Zealand Herald, showed 62% of
people opposed to the removal, while just 24% supported it.
More voters of every party in Parliament opposed the move
than supported it, including voters of the Government
parties.
E tū National Secretary, Rachel Mackintosh,
says the poll result isn’t surprising.
tū National Secretary, Rachel Mackintosh /
Supplied
“The poll demonstrates
that New Zealand voters know the importance lifting wages,
especially for our lowest paid workers,” Rachel
says.
“A strong majority value the
important role cleaners, security guards, and catering
workers play in the core public service. While they aren’t
directly employed by a government department, they work for
all of us – and the decent thing to do is make sure they
get the Living Wage.
“There has been an
outpouring of support for these workers in the face of the
Government’s intention to take away their Living Wage.
That’s not surprising – anyone who cares about solving
the cost-of-living crisis knows that you can’t do it by
cutting wage entitlements.”
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Rachel says the
Government has been dishonest about the impact of this
proposal.
“Nicola Willis’ assertion that this move
is somehow good for the workforce is frankly insulting, and
reeks of an ideological commitment to a laissez-faire
economic approach that encourages the exploitation of
vulnerable workers.
“Aotearoa New Zealand is better
than that. We care about the people doing the hard work. We
don’t think they are ‘bottom-feeders’. We believe that
everyone should be paid enough to make ends
meet.
“The Government must ditch this unpopular,
short-sighted, nasty proposal.”
The poll was
conducted by Talbot Mills and commissioned by E tū. Read
the poll report here.
