Bill amendments unsuccessful

Press, 14 May 1987, Page 8

Bill amendments unsuccessful

PA Wellington The Opposition last evening unsuccessfully sought to include amendments to the Labour Relations Bill designed to bring “real flexibility” to employer-worker negotiations. National members continued to. attack the Government’s overhaul of industrial relations, saying that it took away individual rights covering union membership and negotiations with employers. i “Those fundamental rights are not available to the workers. They are in the hands of the centralised trade unions,” National’s spokesman on labour, Mr Bill Birch (Franklin), said while debating the bill’s committee stages. Mr Roger Maxwell (Nat., Taranaki) said negotiations should not be simply determined by “centralised union muscle.” Instead, terms and conditions of employment should cover a range of bargaining contracts, such as awards and establish-

ment, enterprise and industry agreements. Such agreements were only available at the will of the union, instead of both parties. “Our concept of industrial relations is that the employer and employees have the right to choose, decide who is going to negotiate on their behalf and finally reach an agreement which is a fully enforceable contract.” Mr Birch said National’s amendments would allow workplace agreements between individual groups of workers and their employers. The member for Onehunga and chairman of Parliament’s labour Select Committee, Mr Fred Gerbic, criticised the Opposition amendments as "quite ridiculous.” He said Mr Birch did not understand trade unionism and that workers elected officials and ran their union through the executive and meetings.