Unionism bill passes through second reading

Press, 1 June 1985, Page 8

Unionism bill passes through second reading

PA Wellington The Government took another step towards reintroducing compulsory unionism yesterday, winning a second reading passage for the controversial Union Membership Bill by 38 votes to 25. But the three hour and a half debate after the Government took urgency brought a declaration from the Opposition that the next National government would bring back voluntary unionism. National was implacably opposed to compulsory unionism, said the acting Opposition spokesman on labour, Mr Bruce Townshend.

However, the Acting Minister of Labour, Mr Prebble, accused the Oppositon of double standards on the issue. He said the National Government, in a report in 1982 to the United Nations committee on New Zealand’s laws on civil and political rights, had said the unqualified preference clause was consistent with giving the individual a right of freedom of association. “That’s the National Party’s own words that they signed as a Cabinet within the last three years,” he said.

At the height of controversy over voluntary union-

ism legislation, the then Government had been saying something completely different on the other side of the world, said Mr Prebble. The bill before the House provides for a new system’ of union membership based on the unqualified preference system. There will initially be a statutory insertion into all awards and collective agreements of a non-negoti-ated union membership clause for 18 months. During that time ballots will be taken on retaining the clause. Subsequent ballots will be held at threeyearly intervals.