Bargaining between Wellington Free Ambulance and FIRST
Union ambulance officers has been cut short by the employer
following an effective offer of a 6% pay cut for frontline
responders, and strike action is under consideration in the
capital, said FIRST Union.
“Wellington Free Ambulance
have offered their workers an effective 6% pay cut by
suggesting a 1.5% increase to wages when the CPI (Consumer
Price Index) is at 7.3%,” said Faye McCann, FIRST Union
National Ambulance Organiser.
“Following that insult,
they ended our bargaining meetings after one day, ignored
all of our members’ claims and used delay tactics to force
ambulance officers to wait another ten weeks to get back to
the negotiating table.”
“Our members believe that WFA
are waiting until their upcoming fundraising drive begins,
but they are still not confident that any of those donations
will find their way to frontline officers.”
The
Wellington Free Ambulance service is partially funded by a
“Onesie Appeal”,
during which members of the public are encouraged to wear a
onesie and fundraise for the capital’s sole ambulance
service.
“With the #FireCrisis
continuing, it’s clear that first responders like
firefighters and ambulance officers aren’t being supported
to do their jobs properly,” said Ms McCann.
“The
charity funding model is failing both patients and ambulance
officers.”
“Our emergency health services require
well-trained and experienced ambulance officers, but low pay
and difficult conditions mean many people are immediately
turned off from the profession.”
“The result is an
underfunded and precarious ambulance service that simply
can’t meet the demands of our population – we are
teetering on the edge.”
“Fixing that starts with
keeping people in the job by paying them properly for what
is one of the most challenging frontline professions in the
country.”
Ms McCann said Wellington Free Ambulance
members had the right to strike during negotiations and were
currently considering their industrial
options.
© Scoop Media
Putting Workers First
FIRST Union is New Zealand’s second-largest private sector trade union.
Formed in 2011 after the merger between the National Distribution Union and Finsec, FIRST Union represents 27,000 workers in the Finance, Industrial (Textile and Wood), Retail, Stores, Transport and Logistics sectors.
FIRST Union is also affiliated to the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions and runs several networks including the Union Network of Migrants, the Runanga, Fono and Womens’ Committee. In 2015 FIRST Union launched Samoa First Union, Samoa’s only private sector union.
Join FIRST Union today for higher pay, better conditions and more say at work.
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