Media Release: Dairy Workers Union

Wednesday September 9 2009

Job security for workers off the menu at Open Country Cheese

The Dairy Workers Union has slammed the mean-spirited attempts by Talleys-owned Open Country Cheese to casualise its workforce in the middle of a recession.

“At a time when many workers are anxious about their security of work, Open Country Cheese has in recent weeks set up a bogus employment agency specifically to keep the workforce casualised and avoid union representation,” said James Ritchie, National Secretary of the Dairy Workers Union.   “Now it is threatening permanent workers with a six week lockout.”

“Open Country Cheese’s heavy-handed response to the workers’ attempts at job security and protection goes against the basic Kiwi sense of fairness.”

“The company is running a misinformation campaign with farmers.  The main issues at stake are not pay – this dispute centres on security of hours and protections against being turned into temporary workers.”

The workers’ main outstanding issues are:

•           A proper process around hours of work and roster changes

•           An agreement on provisions and a process for redundancy and restructuring

•           Ratios over temporary to permanent workers

•           Paid meal breaks for rostered shift workers, an industry norm.

The union and the company are in mediation today.

Ends.

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