Fair Pay For Westies!

And everyone else too.

A Pacific Island lady shyly, but determinedly, climbed the stairs to the stage and with shouts of support from the crowd took her place at the lectern. She greeted the audience in a language I didn’t understand, getting a warm cheer in response. Then switched to English and told us about her life.

How she worked 45 hours during the week at one job and then would do another two shifts at a potentially dangerous security job in the weekends.

Two weeks ago she was attacked by a man. Understandably upset she told us how she’d wondered if this was the end, who would look after her kids?

A young woman spoke about a work place injury she’d suffered and how she’d been told by her employer that she couldn’t take time to see a doctor. Now, as a result of continuing to work with the injury, she has long term back problems.

People talked about the long hours they worked to try and give their families a good life and the difference that unions make, letting them feel that they have the right to speak up. About the progress that has been achieved on worker’s rights under this government.

An event suggestion appeared in my newsfeed this week which caught my eye. It was called “Fair Pay For Westies”. I’ve been planning to get along to more political events in the lead up to the election so off I went yesterday afternoon to check it out.

It did mean leaving civilisation behind though, and travelling over the great partition (the North Western motorway). Leaving behind the familiarity of Te Atatu Peninsula with our solid quarter acre brick and tiles (many now replaced by six or seven town houses on the same section).

Once, long before Te Atatu Peninsula changed it’s name from Tat North and gentrified, there was a time when the neighbourhood across the motorway, Tat South, was considered the better location.

Tat North was a suburb of the working class, it was a rough place with a poor reputation. Meanwhile across the divide Tat South was developed in 1970s hues of brown and orange with sunken lounges, keys in the bowl, and more fondue than you could shake a skewer at.

Years ago when we were looking at places for our young family we saw one in Tat South with a pool in an interior courtyard that could be accessed from pretty much every room in the house. An absolute nightmare with young toddlers.

So across the gap to the heartland of West Auckland, Tirimoana school hall. The locals might be more likely to own their own businesses these days than work in traditional union environments, but this is Labour territory through and through.

The invitation said “Come along and join the campaign to defend Fair Pay Agreements in this year's election. Hear from workers, union reps, and West Auckland's Labour MPs. Oscar Kightley will MC. It will be a lively and fun kick-off for our campaign to fight for the rights of West Auckland's workers.”

The Fair Pay Agreements system brings together unions and employer associations to bargain for minimum employment terms for all covered employees in an industry or occupation.

West Auckland Labour MPs hosting the event were:

• Phil Twyford - Te Atatu.

• Deborah Russell - New Lynn.

• Vanushi Walters - Upper Harbour.

West Auckland electorate boundaries 2020.

MC Oscar Kightley grew up in Te Atatu, going to Rutherford College, the high school my three youngest went to, the youngest still does. You might have seen Rutherford in the news this week because of a lockdown, or if you watched 7 Days last week you’d have heard that Rawiri Waititi went there, along with then Head Boy Simon Bridges.

You’ll probably be familiar with Oscar from numerous roles in television, particularly for starring in, and co-writing, Sione’s Wedding. In 2022, Kightley was elected to the Henderson-Massey local board at the 2022 New Zealand local elections, representing the Labour Party.

Below you’ll find Oscar, second from left in the second row, at Matipo Primary in 1978. My kids went there too. That school was a big part in us moving to where we live and is just across the sporting fields from our house.

I arrived right on time, traffic was awful. Said hello to someone I’d only engaged with online, and ran into the mum and nana of one of my kid’s friends. Good people, it felt like an appropriate community setting, a school hall with children’s art on the walls.

Our MC started by stating that the purpose of the event, which he wanted us to work towards, was to get Labour people and union people to defend Fair Pay Agreements - FPA, from the “Coalition of Clowns” who say they’ll get rid of it. There was lots of applause as each union was named. I wondered whether at National Party events they read out the names of donors with the same enthusiasm.

He talked about the event being about the many and not the few, that it was a community of workers who look out for each other. Minister Michael Wood, who was to be the key speaker, was running late. Oscar joked that he was busy selling those shares.

We heard from the workers before the politicians. Hospitality workers telling terrible stories of being abused, spat at, and the impacts of the industry on their mental health. They talked about people already being driven out of the industry by the terms and conditions. That working 40 hours per week in the sector wasn’t enough to pay the rent and put food on the table.

On the loss of New Zealand’s egalitarian past and the fact that FPAs were stopping things getting worse, as they would surely become under National and ACT who would get rid of them.

I found the feeling of love and affection people had for each other, and those speaking, very moving. People were very emotional about how important this was, not just for them but for their children’s futures. I was struck by how incredibly hard working and honest they were, by the love for their families, and an overwhelming feeling that they deserved a fair go in life.

Oscar asked rhetorically what sort of people you’d have to be to want to get rid of FPAs when things are hard enough for working people as it is.

There was a musical interlude. I didn’t envy them, a tough crowd to be a musician in front of. But people got into it, there was so much goodwill in the room. Even the comments from speakers about National were mostly mystified as to why someone would want for do that to people. There was no hint of negativity or nastiness.

The singer joked that she didn’t write songs to entertain people and had written the songs at a particularly bad point in her life. It wasn’t a promising introduction. Songs about the difference between what rich people want, and get, and what the poor get. I thought she was pretty good.

Minister Michael Wood arrived. He was the Workplace Relations and Safety Minister when the FPA legislation passed. If you imagined there’d be any ill feeling towards Wood over his recent “scandal” you’d be wrong, there was certainly none in this crowd.

Michael Wood.

He talked about FPAs protecting workers and that there are issues as things stand with people not getting paid for all the hours they are working, not getting meal breaks they are entitled to. That people don’t have scheduled hours, they don’t know when they will be working or for how long. How, he asked, can you have a normal family life like that?

He said his message was simply - join a union, and support FPAs by getting Labour back into power.

The Minister talked about the people who have the most, saying to the people who have the least, that they can’t ask for more. That they want us to forget that you can make change, that things like FPAs can become reality and change peoples lives.

He spoke about the Covid lockdowns and how challenging they were. How it was the workers, the cleaners, the people in that room, the bus drivers, the supermarket workers that kept us going, and reminded us all that things run because of the efforts of working people.

People that have been left out from things in society. FPAs were about giving them hope and opportunities for the future. To move us away from a race to the bottom that offers a lower and lower standard of living for the people who keep our society functioning.

Minister Woods said that we’d had thirty years of people telling us that capital is what builds this country and that workers should be grateful for what they get. How quickly we forget the importance of their roles.

FPAs were the biggest change for working people in 30 years. Labour couldn’t get it through last term with Winston putting a stop to it, but they delivered it this term. If we want all of the advancements that Labour has given workers it was critical to return them to government or that progress would all be gone.

He left us with a favourite quote.

caption...

Oscar returned to wrap up proceedings. He said that life cannot just be a constant struggle and talked about our rights as human beings. Again bewildered that people would want these people to work even harder - they simply can’t.

And why do some want to get rid of Fair Pay Agreements? So that already wealthy people with large incomes can get tax cuts, leaving those who work two jobs and have nothing left after the bills are paid, to work even harder. That’s pretty messed up.

Oscar completed proceedings saying 800,000 people didn’t vote at the last election. I was left with a couple of thoughts.

Where’s Nick?

One, that anyone who thinks the frustrating, but ultimately trivial, matter over Auckland Airport shares was the curtain on Michael Wood’s career is being embarrassingly premature. That was not the vibe I got at all, he is an impressive speaker and I can see why some have talked about him being a future Labour leader.

Two, I would ask anybody who would listen to the people that spoke yesterday whether they thought those people deserved better, or worse, terms and conditions than they currently have as they go about earning their living.

Like Oscar I can only shake my head in bewilderment at the thought that there are people with plenty who want more for themselves at the expense of these hard working, low earning, kind and decent people.

I leave you with a wonderful short film that Oscar Kightley made about growing up in Te Atatu. It might look familiar to some of you, even if you didn’t grow up in West Auckland. He referred to it as a love song to a childhood in a changing suburb. The shop with the Bob Marley mural is about 200 metres from where I’m writing this.