Cheese factory workers just want to do their jobs

Media Release: Dairy Workers Union
Sunday October 4, 2009.

Cheese factory workers just want to do their jobs

The Dairy Workers Union says that locked out workers at a Waikato cheese factory just want to return to work and have their jobs covered by a collective agreement, and are disappointed by the company’s latest sideshow – a restructuring proposal released late on Friday night.

36 workers at Open Country Cheese’s Waharoa factory are entering their third week of being locked out, despite both an Employment Court saying it is illegal, and mediation between the parties set down for this Thursday.

“That Open Country now has a proposal on the table to significantly reduce the permanent workforce in the powder and whey plants at Waharoa, can only be seen as the latest moves in a dirty campaign to prevent workers from joining a union and getting a collective agreement,” Dairy Workers Union National Secretary James Ritchie said.

“The proposal sees the company wanting to make more use of seasonal workers and strip back permanent jobs, precisely one of the reasons why our members want the security of having their work covered by a collective employment agreement.”

“This move follows the setting up of a bogus employment agency to try and casualise the workforce, attempts to intimidate workers into leaving the union, a plant manager assaulting one of the workers and fanciful ides of environmental sabotage.”

“On Friday the Dairy Workers Union removed its strike notice, due to come into effect yesterday, as a gesture of good faith ahead of further mediation talks this Thursday.”

“However Open Country has kept its illegal lockout in place, and shows no signs of taking any notice of a Court order, over a week old now, requiring them to let the workers return to their jobs.”

James Ritchie said that while they remained hopeful of getting somewhere at mediation, a strike notice had been issued to take affect in 14 days if mediation wasn’t successful.

“It’s quite simple really All these workers want is to have their jobs protected through a collective agreement. Almost all employers in New Zealand accept that this is a choice workers have. The sooner Open Country can come to terms with this also, the sooner this dispute will be over,” James Ritchie said.

For more information about the dispute, visit http://www.nzdwu.org.nz . Outstanding issues for the workers are hours of work and roster changes, redundancy and restructuring protection, length of time temporary workers serve and their ratio to permanent workers, and paid meal breaks. No wage claim was on the table.

ENDS

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