Air Nelson Still Using Illegal Labour - EPMU

June 27, 2007
Media Release

Air Nelson Still Using Illegal Labour - EPMU

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union has applied to the Employment Relations Authority asking for an injunction against Air Nelson over its continued use of illegal strikebreaking labour.
 
The EPMU is asking the Authority to urgently send the matter to the Employment Court for a decision.
 
The union alleges Air Nelson is illegally using outside contractors to do the work of striking aircraft engineers, despite an Employment Court ruling less than two weeks ago ordering the company to stop using illegal labour.
 
EPMU National Aviation Organiser Strachan Crang says Air Nelson needs to be held to account for repeatedly breaking the law.
 
"We've already won an injunction stopping Air Nelson from using illegal strikebreakers to load freight, and their response has been to start using illegal labour in the engineering division instead.
 
"This shows a complete disregard for the law and it's time they were held to account. Air Nelson needs to stop undermining the rights of our members and start talking to us about how we can bring this dispute to an end."
 
The dispute is now in its fifth week and involves around 100 Air Nelson workers. The industrial action is targeting food freight and engineering and includes an overtime ban as well as a series of four day long rolling stoppages.
 
Air Nelson is a fully owned subsidiary of Air New Zealand and connects most of New Zealand's regional centres with its main cities.
 
ENDS

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