Govt to bring in voluntary trade unionism

Press, 8 July 1983, Page 1

Govt to bring in voluntary trade unionism

PA

Wellington

Legislation will be passed this year to provide for voluntary trade union membership and introducing youth pay rates in all awards, the Prime Minister, Mr Muldoon, announced yesterday.

Draft legislation will be prepared by the Minister of Labour, Mr Bolger.

The Government caucus yesterday afternoon gave approval for the industrial law changes, Mr Muldoon said.

The draft legislation would be further considered by caucus in its final form before its introduction into Parliament, “maybe in six weeks,” he said.

Asked that if in view of the opposition expressed to both ideas by unions and some employers the move would be seen as provocative, Mr Muldoon said, “No, we don’t provoke people.”

Mr Muldoon said he did not think the legislation would affect the present tripartite wage-fixing talks for moving out of the wage freeze early next year.

“I don’t think it will make any difference,” he said.

Mr Muldoon said there was no particular reason for the timing of the new legislation.

Mr Muldoon said the voluntary unionism provisions of the legislation would put into place the “freedom of association” philosophy that he, and most of his caucus colleagues, had always supported. Mr Bolger later said, however, that the changes

aimed to achieve more than a mere philosophical principle.

“There is the potential to get a better industrial movement out of this change,” he said.

Both Mr Muldoon and Mr Bolger rejected the suggestion that the switch to voluntary unionism would lead to a few strong militant unions dominating the industrial scene at the expense of the more moderate unions.

“They (the large unions) have the dominant say now,” Mr Bolger said. Asked if he thought the militant unions would in future dominate the industrial scene, Mr Muldoon said, “So what’s new, that’s what they are doihg at present.”

Mr Bolger said that the two changes announced yesterday were just part of an industrial relations package he hoped to bring into force before the end of the year. He would not elaborate on future initiatives. He said he had, over the last three or four years, become increasingly concerned about the “negative, backward-looking,” views of many trade unions. They had not.had to respond to their members’ wishes or needs as they were guaran-

teed of both membership and funds.

The present system of compulsory unionism, through the unqualified preference clauses in awards, was “not conducive to leadership being responsive to its members,” he said. Mr Bolger said the changes were “not a scenario based on let’s punish the unions.” “There is no reason for the unions to believe in any way that this will destroy them,” he said.

While he was sure that the unions would be opposed to the changes and threaten action, Mr Bolger said he could not agree with the leader of the Labour Party, Mr Lange, that the changes would bring “industrial mayhem” to New Zealand. Mr Bolger said he was aware that in most countries where voluntary unionism existed, closed shops had emerged in certain industries. He said the Government would look at the protections necessary to avoid these situations if they were not wanted. One option was to follow the British example whereby 85 per cent of the work-force had to approve the establishment of a closed shop. Mr Bolger said he was

confident that most New Zealanders supported voluntary unionism and the introduction of youth pay rates. He said youth rates would be worked out as percentages of the adult rate, but details had yet to be decided. The rates would apply to those aged 15 to 18. Fifteen-year-olds were likely to earn about half the adult rate, and it would increase with the worker’s age.

Neither youth rates nor voluntary unionism would be introduced before the end of the wage freeze, scheduled for February next year, Mr Bolger said.

Mr Muldoon acknowledged that some employers, as well as trade unionists, did not support voluntary unionism. There was a division usually between employers with small or large work-forces. Voluntary unionism was particularly important to small business, he said. Compulsory unionism was seen by these employers as “just a confounded nuisance.”

Most employers favoured youth rates because it would enable them to employ people While they gained experience. About two-thirds of all awards already had youth rate provisions, Mr Muldoon said.