Hello everyone. Andrea Black here – the new Policy Director and Economist for the CTU. Continuing the multidisciplinary approach started with Bill Rosenberg and his origins in mathematical psychology, I am coming to you following a career in policy, accounting and tax – including tax enforcement.
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I finish ten wonderful years as CTU Policy Director and Economist at the end of the year. In the new year I’ll be working part time for the CTU on the ‘Future of Work’. So it is a good time to look at what the Government is doing in this space.
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Union members benefit from a pay premium and other advantages resulting from their collective action and voice. But do unions provide a wider benefit to society over and above what they do for their members?
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In July, the Centre for Labour, Employment and Work (CLEW) at Victoria University released their annual analysis of collective employment agreements (CEAs). It shows again that people who are part of a collective get better pay rises: the union pay premium.
Read more... In June, Statistics New Zealand published data from its annual Annual Enterprise Survey (AES) which shows company profits, wages and salaries paid, and many other details of companies in the commercial economy. It shows a falling share of income going to wage and salary earners, along with increasing company profits which are even stronger when… Read more »
Read more... Last Tuesday the CTU launched a report by economist Dr Ganesh Nana on the evidence as to the impacts of industry (or sector) collective bargaining. We commissioned the study to promote Fair Pay Agreements which the Government is currently considering. Fair Pay Agreements aim to form a floor of wages and conditions for an industry,… Read more »
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The Council of Trade Unions has today released an independent report conducted by economic research company BERL into the validity of sector bargaining. And the findings are clear – there is no economic reason not to implement sector bargaining but many social and individual wellbeing reasons to do so. CTU President Richard Wagstaff is urging… Read more »
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Was the “Wellbeing Budget” much different from any other Budget? Was it better? It is of course the first one, so we need to allow the Government some room to develop its ideas and processes. Quick answer: Yes it was a Wellbeing Budget in that it was built around the idea of focusing on many… Read more »
Read more... The Government describes it as a Wellbeing Budget and has taken a different approach to the way funding has been prioritised, including stating five Budget Priorities last December. We have therefore not only assessed it in the usual way by each of the main Budget areas (by ‘Vote’) but include an assessment as to what… Read more »
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Minister Twyford’s announcement this morning of reform of the Public Transport Operating Model (PTOM) will be a timely fix for bad legislation that has cost jobs and pay for drivers and left public transport systems broken says New Zealand Council of Trade Unions President Richard Wagstaff. PTOM was introduced in 2013 with the intention of… Read more »
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