Cunliffe pledges $18.40 an hour for 16 year old state sector office assistants

reports:

The leader David Cunliffe has told a meeting of Council of Trade Unions that a government would introduce a living wage rate for core public sector employees as matter of priority if elected.

The union movement has been running a campaign for a living wage with a minimum hourly rate of $18.40.

David Cunliffe has also said scrapping the youth wage rate would also be one of the first things a Labour government would do.

So it will be illegal for a state agency to pay a 16 year old anything less than $18.40 an hour.

The stupidity of taking a calculation that is based on w couple with two kids and saying it must apply to all employees is massive.

Equally ridiculous is the outsourcing of your wages policy to some Anglican church minister in Lower Hutt. They  are basically saying that whatever Rev Waldegrave declares to be the correct level of the living wage – they will force the state sector to pay it!

The unions get their entire wishlist as payback for voting for Cunliffe according to the Herald:

Mr Cunliffe, received strong support from unions during the recent leadership contest, underlined the commitments he made while campaigning for the job.

That included raising the minimum wage immediately to $15 an hour if Labour was elected next year, supporting the “Living Wage” campaign, putting it in place immediately for public sector workers, and extending paid parental leave from 14 to 26 weeks.

Mr Cunliffe also pledged to “scrap 's unfair employment changes in the first 100 days”.

He took aim at the “fire at will” legislation, “attacks on collective bargaining”, the undermining of health and safety, and moves “taking away smoko breaks”.

So Labour will return to being the only country in the OECD without a grievance free trial period.

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