Speculation surrounding the new Covid-19 community case in Auckland last week has cast a light on the pressure retail and hospitality workers face every day. For New Zealand, a new case of Covid-19 in the community is an alarming event in and of itself. The fact that the source of the transmission was initially a … Read more
Drain layer Ses Tohi (aka Professional Mud Dog) takes Sherry Zhang and photographer Edith Amituanai on a tour around his work site near Auckland Airport – and talks about what he loves about his job, misconceptions about tradies, and what it’s like owning his own business. Ses Tohi, director of drain laying company SS Civil, … Read more
Budget 2020: From supermarket workers to machine operators to cleaners, the people at the bottom of the socioeconomic pile deserve to be be part of the post-pandemic conversation – and to be allowed to speak for themselves, writes Stacey Shortall. While there is an audible sigh of relief in New Zealand that we are now … Read more
Good morning and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Challenges loom in matching unemployed with rural jobs, trans-Tasman travel bubble agreed in principle, and Greens push for urgent Fair Pay Agreements. It is increasingly becoming clear that one of the country’s biggest economic challenges over the rest of the year will be matching people … Read more
Summer reissue: Uber became one of the biggest companies in the world in a few short years. Duncan Greive reviews Mike Isaac’s extraordinary Super Pumped, which shows the world just what it sacrificed for cheap rides. First published 29 September, 2019. There are so many stories in Super Pumped, a riveting new account of the … Read more
Uber became one of the biggest companies in the world in a few short years. Duncan Greive reviews Mike Isaac’s extraordinary Super Pumped, which shows the world just what it sacrificed for cheap rides. There are so many stories in Super Pumped, a riveting new account of the rise of Uber, which seem to capture … Read more
A Stuff column by ‘millennial’ Jackson Thomas pondered why anyone would work in fencing, but it applies to much of manual labour. With her husband’s permission, Emily Writes shares his story of what an honest living really is. “Fencing sounds like a great way to make an honest living, but you don’t have to be a … Read more
Corporates shouldn’t think of the living wage as an expense, but rather as an investment in their business and people, says Vector’s Chief Risk Officer Kate Beddoe. As New Zealand’s largest energy distributor, Vector puts a lot of money into electricity investments and infrastructure in Auckland. I mean, a lot: we’re talking billions of dollars … Read more
A Malaysian company that produces one in four rubber gloves on the planet has come under serious heat in the last week over a series of explosive investigations alleging forced labour and migrant worker exploitation throughout their vast network of factories. New Zealand needs to step up on these sort of questions, writes Edward Miller … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Major workplace reform bill moves forward, dire warning for Hutt Valley from climate change, and plans are afoot to pedestrianise large parts of Auckland City. The coalition government has signed off on the workplace relations changes that they intend to pass into law, reports Stuff. The bill … Read more
The chair of Vector’s Diversity and Inclusion Committee, Teina Teariki Mana, ponders the state of gender equity in an industry that still lags behind. The energy industry is predominantly male and if you look at the statistics, Vector is no exception – just 3 in 10 of our employees are female. For generations, working in … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Government moves to address construction concerns, NZ First links to Wally Haumaha keep getting revealed, and push to bring back health targets. The government has agreed to stop low-balling construction companies who bid on contracts, in an effort to save the sector from collapse. Stuff reports that the … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Government moves to address construction worker shortage, data on regressiveness of fuel tax released, and Sir John Key pops up as a lobbyist. It’s been a big 24 hours of news about the logistics of the Kiwibuild programme, in which the government intends to build 100,000 … Read more
It’s a bold claim from Simon Bridges, but has his office pulled a bit of a swifty on the numbers? Alex Braae checks the maths. Here’s the claim: National Party leader Simon Bridges says in the nine months of the Labour government, there has been more industrial action than under nine years of the National … Read more
Welcome to the Cheat Sheet, a clickable, shareable, bite-sized FAQ on the news of the moment. Today, are minimum wage workers being exploited and underpaid? Ahh, the minimum wage. It can be seen to be either a floor to ensure employers don’t try to pay us for our labour with only the smell of success … Read more
Good morning, and welcome to The Bulletin. In today’s edition: Kiwifruit workers debate and divide deepens, an admission that Kiwibuild might not involve actually building so many houses, and Trump pulls out of Iran deal. The shortage of fruit pickers and packhouse staff has morphed into a debate on migrant workers and unemployment in Parliament. One … Read more