First Union has reached a standstill in its negotiations with New World Centre City’s franchise owners for a collective agreement for store members but they have pledged to continue to protest in the hope that it will bring about substantive improvement to both pay and working conditions. South Island New World employees are currently paid up to $2.00 an hour less than their North Island colleagues.
Despite the union meeting with the owners of the Centre City franchise in July last year, the company has clearly indicated that they are not prepared to negotiate pay at all.
First Union store delegate Cathleen Rickerby has said, “Initially we are just asking for $1 more than what they currently pay us, a few more days of sick leave [currently they receive the minimum], that the rosters will be more than two weeks in advance, and that employees’ hours can be changed but it must be by mutual agreement. These are basic things that we used to have many years ago, but it’s now all changed.”
Union members at the Centre City branch haven’t given up hope though. Rickerby has said “It has become my legacy that I’m not leaving the New World store until we get a collective agreement for all of the staff.”
There have been five First Union pickets since July 2016 with ongoing leaflet distribution at the Centre City store in an attempt to bring about this change, according to First Union Organiser Shirley Walthew.
According to Rickerby, management is unhappy with her talking to other employees about the union as well as her involvement in the protests, and she “has to be careful” as a result.
After one protest she took part in, the store’s management sent her “a letter saying I denigrated the employer and, though I may not have realised it this time, if I do it again I may face an instant dismissal.” Critic understands that this is an illegal course of action for an employer to take.
With Foodstuffs South Island Limited being a separate commercial entity from Foodstuffs North Island, First Union has struggled to bring pay in-line with the North Island stores.
Walthew explained that, “The Foodstuffs model of franchises means that the Union has to negotiate on an individual store basis which is quite different from Progressive Foods [owners of Countdown supermarkets amongst others], which is a National agreement.”
Progressive Foods have agreed to a national collective agreement to cover their Countdown employees, meaning they receive the same pay and conditions regardless of where they live or work in New Zealand.
Walthew explained that the union and its Centre City members were simply seeking to have “genuine negotiations in good faith with the employer that includes negotiating for fair and reasonable pay” but spoke of a clear unwillingness from the company to come to the table.
Nevertheless, Walthew told Critic, “We are determined to have a collective agreement before the end of the year and every effort will be made to achieve this with support from members, Unions Otago and the public.”
In attempting to speak to the store’s owners, Critic was directed to the Foodstuffs Auckland Headquarters, who said that Foodstuffs were unfortunately unable to comment on the issue before the story was published.