Economy, Work, & Welfare Archive

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  Odds against women in the Pay Equity Wheel of Fortune - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  On Saturday, I went to the Grey Lynn festival to talk to people about our women’s policy, and draw attention to the inequities between women and men when it comes to paid work. We invited festival goers to spin the Pay Equity Wheel of Fortune – Show Me The Money! read more
  November 22, 2011 12:43 pm - 12 Comments
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  Goldman Sachs’ response to Occupy Wall Street - by frog

  
  
  
  “As thousands have gathered in Lower Manhattan, passionately expressing their deep discontent with the status quo, we have taken notice of these protests,” wrote Lloyd Blankfein, boss of Goldman Sachs, in a recent letter to investors.  “And we asked ourselves this question: ‘How can we make money off them?’ The answer is the newly launched [...] read more
  November 5, 2011 8:30 am - 15 Comments
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  I’m calling foul on National’s youth minimum wage plan - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Last week, the National Party announced policy to reduce the minimum wage for many young people. Yesterday, the most recent Department of Statistics Household Labour Force survey results were released.  It is mostly pretty grim reading.  Unemployment has gone up, and very few jobs have been created. But there was a wee bit of good [...] read more
  November 4, 2011 7:56 am - 21 Comments
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  Making sense at the Marton lockout - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  On a corner of the State Highway near Marton about half the workforce of the CMP (Canterbury Meat Processors) workforce are locked out and holding a picket. I arrived as the breakfast was coming off the barbecue on day nine of the lockout. The workers held placards calling for a fair agreement and the chance [...] read more
  November 2, 2011 9:29 am - 8 Comments
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  National’s war on the poor - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  This afternoon John Key and Paula Bennett announced the National Party’s long-heralded welfare reform package.  As I expected, it is a punitive war on the poor that will harass beneficiaries into low paid jobs, or in many cases off benefit and into no job at all because the jobs simply don’t exist.  Metiria says National is backing [...] read more
  November 1, 2011 5:34 pm - 75 Comments
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  World Economic Forum calls for government leadership on green job creation - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  The World Economic Forum, a group consisting of the world’s leading corporate citizens, is calling on governments to take the lead in green job creation through the retrofitting of commercial buildings to make them more energy efficient. The report, entitled A Profitable & Resource Efficient Future: Catalysing Retrofit Finance & Investing in Commercial Real Estate, [...] read more
  November 1, 2011 3:00 pm - 7 Comments
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  Park the urban sprawl – how parking shapes our cities - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The Herald reports the government has been criticizing Auckland Council for it’s new spatial plan. The government says the spatial plan places too much emphasis on improving public transport and creating a compact urban form (as if they’re bad!). read more
  October 27, 2011 9:18 am - 7 Comments
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  Building industry sees eye-to-eye with Green economic policies - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  The Construction Strategy Group has recently published their report on the state of the building industry entitled Valuing the Role of Construction in the NZ Economy. The Construction Strategy Group is a lobby group and is made up of a who’s who in the industry. Their report outlines a number of key initiatives they’d like [...] read more
  October 19, 2011 9:19 am - 3 Comments
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  Transport funding CONsultation - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  A few months ago I wrote a draft submission on the Government Policy Statement on Land Transport funding and encouraged members of the public to send it in. Normally, I generally don’t encourage people to make form submissions on a topic but because the issue of land transport funding is pretty technical I wanted to [...] read more
  October 18, 2011 1:55 pm - 5 Comments
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  Why Sir Paul Callaghan needs to reconsider clean technology - by Russel Norman

  
  
  
  Sir Paul Callaghan’s opinion piece in the Herald critiques our economic plan to create 100,000 new green jobs. His paper raises some important points about the record of previous governments and their attempts to pick winners in the research and development (R&D) field. A key element of our Green Jobs initiative launched on September 21 [...] read more
  October 11, 2011 1:00 pm - 16 Comments
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  The Minister of Evasive Answers - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  Parliamentary questions are meant to be one of the ways in which the Government and its Ministers are kept accountable to Parliament, and through those of us who are privileged to serve as its Members, to the people of New Zealand. So I am pretty disappointed when I get replies like these to written Parliamentary [...] read more
  October 7, 2011 9:37 am - 4 Comments
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  Childcare changes typical of Govt’s anti-child approach - by Metiria Turei

  
  
  
  Social Development Minister Paula Bennett has realised that if you’re going to work-test sole parents and force them into low-paid jobs when their children are six (or younger), someone’s going to have to look after the kids. read more
  October 3, 2011 4:39 pm - 6 Comments
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  Fair Pay for “Sleepover” work - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  In the very last week of this Parliamentary term a Bill will be passed that actually makes total sense. The so called “Sleepover Bill” implements a Court of Appeal decision that night shift workers working with people who live in supervised residential homes will eventually get fairer pay. The issue of fair pay at night [...] read more
  October 2, 2011 11:24 am - 1 Comment
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  “National will not be raising GST” – 1st anniversary edition - by frog

  
  
  
  Celebrate the 1st anniversary of National breaking its 2008 election promise to not raise GST by making a commitment to vote for a Party you can trust – the Greens. read more
  October 1, 2011 5:49 pm - 12 Comments
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  Pirates in Parliament - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  Fifteen Pirate Party MPs were just elected in Berlin State, Germany. Will we ever see the skull and cross-bones flag flying over the Beehive and what does it all mean for politics? read more
  September 25, 2011 11:27 am - 20 Comments
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  Green Jobs policy in five seconds - by frog

  
  
  
  The Green Party launched their Green Jobs initiative yesterday promising to create 100,000 new green jobs through business incentives and government leadership. Here’s what the 20-page fully-costed fiscally conservative peer-reviewed economic package looks like as a word cloud: read more
  September 22, 2011 4:23 pm - 3 Comments
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  Watch the Green Jobs launch online, live! - by frog

  
  
  
  We have a practical economic plan that creates decent jobs, adds resilience to our economy, and protects our natural environment. It is a plan for clean green prosperity for all New Zealanders. UPDATE: You can watch a recording below read more
  September 21, 2011 10:14 am - 16 Comments
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  It’s official: Abolishing youth rates did not increase youth unemployment - by Gareth Hughes

  
  
  
  The Department of Labour has a new report out (PDF) on the impact of the Green Party initiated abolition of youth rates for the minimum wage. It’s official: Abolishing youth rates did not increase youth unemployment read more
  September 19, 2011 6:34 pm - 19 Comments
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  Graduates and gender pay equity - by Catherine Delahunty

  
  
  
  A new study from the Ministry of Education shows in many occupations tertiary qualifications make very little difference when it comes to the gender pay gap. Four years after graduating, women earn on average $4380 less than men with the same qualifications. The only professions where this is not the case are the performing arts [...] read more
  September 15, 2011 12:15 pm - 7 Comments
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  Where are you now, Mr. Key? - by Kevin Hague

  
  
  
  I have spent a bit of time in  Courthouses. They are typically depressing places, cold, hard, unwelcoming; the people angry, fearful, resigned. The Greymouth Courthouse is a new one. The waiting room is well lit. There are paintings on the walls, carpet on the floor. Yet those same feelings are almost palpable, along with a [...] read more
  September 9, 2011 12:37 pm - 19 Comments