Posts by Denise Roche

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  Skycity gets compensation but we all pay the cost - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  The agreement between the Government and SkyCity for the build of an international convention centre is a deeply dodgy deal. I’m launching a campaign called Gambling Laws – Not For Sale at which has an online petition and a hard-copy petition asking the Government to oppose any legislation to relax the existing gambling laws and  [...] read more
  May 24, 2013 1:19 pm - 16 Comments
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  Pre-pay for recycling: it’s the way forward - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Today the Government is crowing about their TV Takeback scheme. While I am grateful that TVs are being diverted from landfill, this solution is the ambulance at the bottom of the cliff.  The programme collected 23,000 televisions in the Hawke’s Bay and the West Coast, which cost the taxpayer over half a million dollars. This [...] read more
  May 8, 2013 6:01 pm - 10 Comments
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  Kudos to the Warehouse for pay move - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It’s great news that the Warehouse is making it a policy to lift wages. This move is partly inspired by the Living Wage campaign. The Green Party has been actively supporting this campaign that would see big employers sign up to pay a living wage.  This is the wage that would allow their employees to [...] read more
  May 8, 2013 3:44 pm - 6 Comments
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  Bad employers get May day bonus - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It is ironic that the legislation re-introducing youth rates into New Zealand comes into play on a day normally associated internationally with workers celebrating their struggle for  better conditions. From today mean spirited employers have an opportunity to push down rates for young workers. One such employer actively cheerleading the re-introduction of youth rates is [...] read more
  May 1, 2013 2:08 pm - 24 Comments
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  Fight for the living and mourn for the dead: Workers Memorial Day - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Sunday 28th April was Workers Memorial Day and in Auckland I attended the event that was organised by the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions to remember the people in the last year that went to work and never came back. This year’s event highlighted the appalling health and safety record of the forestry industry. [...] read more
  April 29, 2013 6:26 pm - 4 Comments
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  Waste fund flowing offshore - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  On Wednesday, the government announced it will use the Waste Minimisation Fund to finance a programme to deal with a type of hazardous waste from material that was banned from use in New Zealand nearly 10 years ago. While we absolutely agree with cleaning up hazardous waste we do have some concerns about who does [...] read more
  April 26, 2013 2:36 pm - 14 Comments
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  Brickbats and bouquets for Foodstuffs - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Earlier this week it was announced that several companies that employ a lot of young workers will not be taking advantage of the Government’s Minimum Wage (Starting out wage) Amendment Act to pay their staff youth rates. Fast food chain McDonalds joined other retail and fast food companies Bunnings, Farmers, K Mart. Starbucks, KFC and [...] read more
  April 11, 2013 10:22 am - 1 Comment
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  Congrats Sir Bob Jones for your stand against pokies - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It was good to see a stand being taken against pokie machines by Wellington property developer Bob Jones. It’s not often I agree with Sir Bob – and I certainly don’t agree with his description of problem gamblers – however it’s undeniable that the presence of pokie machines makes pubs look dodgy. The pokie industry [...] read more
  March 27, 2013 2:32 pm - 20 Comments
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  Government versus Mayor again. - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It’s only a week since Auckland Mayor Len Brown officially launched the Auckland Unitary Plan and even before its official unveiling government ministers have been rattling their sabres and threatening to have another go at dismantling democracy in Auckland.   As Brian Rudman explained earlier this week, both the Minister for Housing and the Minister for [...] read more
  March 21, 2013 4:58 pm - 19 Comments
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  John Key needs to raise killings of unionists during Colombia visit - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  While John Key is pushing the cause of free trade in Colombia, he needs to raise concerns around the appalling number of trade unionists that die protecting workers’ rights there. In 2011, according to the International Trade Union Confederation 29 trade unionists were murdered in Colombia. Colombia is a violent society where helping to organise [...] read more
  March 5, 2013 2:17 pm - 4 Comments
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  Aggressive lotto marketing harms gamblers - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  The numbers of people presenting to problem gambling services who cite Lotto as the gambling method that causes harm is no surprise given the changes the Lotteries Commission has brought in over the last few years. Marketing for Lotto has become more aggressive – it’s everywhere – the jackpots are higher and Lotteries Commission gambling [...] read more
  February 18, 2013 10:36 am - 6 Comments
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  Workers moving back to 19th Century - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Low wages weaken local economies and communities; as the adults in a family struggle working horrendously long hours and sometimes several jobs to make ends meet, our communities become poorer because those adults do not have any free time to volunteer. read more
  February 15, 2013 3:14 pm - 159 Comments
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  You can’t live on a precarious wage. - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  At the symposium on Precarious Work and the Living Wage in our Communities at AUT today Guy Standing – the author of the 2011 book The Precariat: The New Dangerous Class – talked about the way our labour markets have changed over the last few decades and the impact on workers. The Precariat refers to [...] read more
  February 15, 2013 9:44 am - 54 Comments
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  Submit to sink the lid on Auckland pokies - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Auckland Council is currently reviewing its Class 4 (pub and club pokies) gambling policy, and I’m encouraging people to have their say on this important issue. Councils across New Zealand have some control over the number of pubs and clubs with pokie machines. The policy review will be the first time Auckland Council has brought [...] read more
  February 8, 2013 2:13 pm - 49 Comments
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  A tyred old problem: what to do with used tyres - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  This week a warrant was issued for the arrest of a man whose company has been fined almost $80,000 for dumping an estimated one million tyres at a Waikato property, Radio New Zealand reported. Used tyres are a problem to dispose of and tyre companies often pay people to dispose of them. Many people who obtain [...] read more
  January 18, 2013 3:53 pm - 38 Comments
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  Happy International Volunteer Day – 5 December - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Today is International Volunteer Day and it is a great opportunity to celebrate and thank all those who give their time and energy to good causes. In my own community of Waiheke, where we have a population of around 8000, we have 198 community organisations that rely on volunteers. Between them they contribute in excess [...] read more
  December 5, 2012 4:17 pm - No Comments
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  Hobbit Fever - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  I’ve been a big fan of JRR Tolkien since I was a kid. I was so taken with Lord of the Rings that after I finished reading the books I became convinced that one of my older sisters was a hobbit and she started shaving her toes to shut me up. In my teens my [...] read more
  November 29, 2012 5:04 pm - 90 Comments
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  Charities as advocates: Time we called the Government’s bluff - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  The government has announced that it will indefinitely postpone the review of the Charities Act which had been agreed to with the community and voluntary sector and which was to commence next year and conclude by 2015. Minister Jo Goodhew said that one of the main reasons for her decision was because of the ‘continuing [...] read more
  November 17, 2012 9:24 am - 6 Comments
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  Remembering Waihi and Pike - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  The Pike River report released this week showed how little progress in health and safety New Zealand has made since the days of the Waihi mine strike. My own grandfather was a miner at Waihi. He died when my mother was small and my grandmother said that working in the mine meant long hours and [...] read more
  November 12, 2012 7:19 am - 63 Comments
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  100 years of the public service - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Today marks the 100th anniversary of the Public Service Act of 1912. This act established New Zealand’s public service, changing the model from one in which Ministers treated Ministries as their own personal fiefdoms and pay varied widely between Ministries. Today, the public service performs a wide range of vital roles helping to keep our [...] read more
  November 7, 2012 4:15 pm - 9 Comments
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  Casinos, crime and convention centres - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It’s interesting that just a day after Auckland Chamber of Commerce boss Michael Barnett dismissed the potential for increased harm from pokie machine gambling as secondary to the ‘need’ for a new Convention Centre, Green Co-Leader Metiria Turei has won the lottery that is the members’ bill ballot with her bill to restrict the ability [...] read more
  October 21, 2012 1:47 pm - No Comments
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  Will our young people be celebrating this Labour Weekend? - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  There’s an hilarious take on the old Monty Python skit about the Romans called ‘What have the unions ever done for us?’ It lists some of the many things that workers and their unions have fought for and won – including weekends off, paid annual leave, sick leave, health and safety laws, paid parental leave, [...] read more
  October 19, 2012 9:52 am - 19 Comments
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  Christchurch gets its say on gambling harm reduction - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Yesterday I was in Christchurch with the Commerce Committee hearing the verbal submissions on the Gambling (Gambling Harm Reduction) Amendment Bill. There were around 29,000 written submissions on the bill, with about 400 or so submitters wanting to give oral presentations so the committee is working our way through them. The bill concentrates on “Class [...] read more
  October 5, 2012 11:30 am - 13 Comments
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  Development by stealth on Waiheke Island - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  I feel very fortunate to live on Waiheke Island.  It’s just 35 minutes by fast ferry from downtown Auckland and its permanent population of around 8000 people are friendly and are frequently spurred to action over environmental or social injustices.  It’s where I cut my political teeth – because this is a community that takes [...] read more
  October 4, 2012 9:14 am - 18 Comments
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  Ports of Auckland – messy dispute gets messier - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Although there’s been no industrial action by the Maritime Workers of New Zealand (MUNZ) wharfie members at the Ports of Auckland since early April the dispute is not yet settled – and it looks like it may well ignite again. The latest in this messy and frequently dirty dispute is the creation of a new [...] read more
  September 28, 2012 5:41 pm - 4 Comments
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  Bus drivers strike - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  On Monday it wasn’t until I went to catch the bus to the office near K Road that I remembered that the bus drivers were on strike.  It occurred to me then that it is very rarely these days that ordinary New Zealanders have felt the impact of industrial disputes. In the last year there [...] read more
  September 20, 2012 2:52 pm - 7 Comments
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  Legislating to save face over John Banks scandal - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Yesterday the Government announced proposed changes to the Local Electoral Act around campaign financing to come into force in time for next year’s local body elections. This move is a clear admission from the Government that John Banks should have been sacked from Cabinet because of his actions around campaign donations from Kim Dotcom and [...] read more
  September 13, 2012 12:01 pm - 4 Comments
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  Victory over pokie machines for the Victory community - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Last week’s win for the community of Victory, who finally rid themselves of pokies in their local bar, is an example of what can be achieved when a community takes action. The Victory community is a lower socio-economic area of Nelson but is a community development success story with activities centred around the Victory Community Centre. [...] read more
  August 9, 2012 9:26 am - No Comments
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  Unionised workplaces help workers stay safe - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Health and Safety at work In the last few weeks five different companies have been convicted in District Courts in Wellington, Auckland, Hamilton, Waitakere and Christchurch for failing to keep their staff safe at work.  Four workers were badly injured and one died while they were on the job. In the mining industry in the [...] read more
  August 2, 2012 4:44 pm - 2 Comments
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  International Public Service Day - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  International Public Service Day fell on our weekend – this is a time to appreciate the work done by millions of workers throughout the world who provide public services to their communities. In New Zealand we need to think about the workers who are paid out of budgets provided by our taxes and the services [...] read more
  June 26, 2012 5:18 pm - 1 Comment
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  Valuing volunteers in Volunteer Awareness Week - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  In the last week I’ve spent a lot of time working alongside volunteers as we collect signatures for the petition calling for a referendum on the sale of our state-owned assets. Invariably they’re committed, good-humoured (even in the foulest weather) and graciously give their time to a cause that will ultimately benefit us all.  And [...] read more
  June 21, 2012 6:12 pm - 2 Comments
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  Time to clean up the gambling industry - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It’s all happening on the gambling front right now. This week the Auditor-General’s office agreed to carry out an inquiry into the Prime Minister’s dodgy pokies-for-convention-centre process. Meanwhile, the debate between pokie trusts and politicians around Te Ururoa Flavell’s Gambling Harm Reduction Bill has also been playing out in the media. With submissions on this [...] read more
  June 15, 2012 12:43 pm - 8 Comments
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  Pokies and porkies - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Am I the only one who thinks the folks from the pokie trusts have been telling a load of porkies lately, in their desperate attempts to get public opinion on side? Te Ururoa Flavell’s Gambling Harm Reduction Bill certainly seems to have caused a flurry of lobbying – with Pub Charity and the Lion Foundation, [...] read more
  June 6, 2012 10:01 am - 28 Comments
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  Gambling Harm Reduction Bill good news for community sector - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  It’s no wonder a lot of community organisations rely on money from pokie machines to fund their activities.  Savage cuts to the public sector combined with a tighter contracting environment  usually means a shortfall in money and in a recession there’s not a lot of other money floating around to support local not-for-profit organisations.   (See [...] read more
  May 29, 2012 4:08 pm - 2 Comments
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  A bad week for Public Services and the Community and Voluntary sector - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  All analysis of the budget announced yesterday shows that there’s little in it to improve the lives of low and middle income workers and in fact they’ll be worse off. Tertiary students, old people, the disability sector and even school kids with regular work are all being shaken for a bit more cash to add [...] read more
  May 25, 2012 4:55 pm - 2 Comments
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  The living wage and the zero budget - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  The day before the government’s budget the Service and Food Workers Union (SFWU) was joined by around sixty other community and faith-based organisations to launch the Campaign for a Living Wage. It’s a timely campaign – especially since the budget announcements mean a harder time for low and middle income families. The SFWU – and [...] read more
  May 25, 2012 2:14 pm - 50 Comments
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  Banksie and I slept together, but I bet he won’t remember that - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  As the Green Party spokesperson on Waste, of course I agree with recycling. But ACT MP and former Auckland City Council Mayor and former National Cabinet Minister John Banks has been recycled so many times that he’s long past his use-by date.  The latest revelations of his dodgy dealings to keep donations from SkyCity and [...] read more
  May 2, 2012 1:40 pm - 7 Comments
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  Meat workers are doing their share for New Zealand - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  While all eyes have been on the Ports of Auckland and SkyCity, another important dispute has been unfolding. For over two months, more than 1300 Talley’s-Affco meat workers have been locked out of their workplaces by their employer.  Two days of mediated bargaining began today. Up to 5,000 children in places like Moerewa, Horotiu, Rangiuru, [...] read more
  April 30, 2012 11:11 am - 15 Comments
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  Where does John Banks stand on SkyCity dirty deal? - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Here’s how the votes look likely to stack up on John Key’s dirty deal under which SkyCity would get a relaxation of casino gambling laws and an increase in their pokie machine numbers in return for building a new convention centre in Auckland. For: National + United Future = 60 Against: Greens + Labour + [...] read more
  April 5, 2012 11:21 am - 12 Comments
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  All’s not well in Auckland - by Denise Roche

  
  
  
  Poor Auckland! I hate it when the Government meddles in our city. It was bad enough that we had a forced amalgamation of our local councils to create the supercity. Now we have the Prime Minister selling our law to increase the number of pokies at SkyCity casino in exchange for a mega convention centre. read more
  March 28, 2012 1:55 pm - 5 Comments