18 October 2012

Bill to bolster protections for young workers timely

CTU welcomes the opportunity for parliament to seriously look into the employment of children under the age of 16 and welcomes Rino Tirikatene’s Members Bill on the protection of young workers being drawn from the Ballot today.

CTU Legal Advisor, Jeff Sissons says “we are concerned that people that young are now working not to earn a bit of spending money but to support themselves and their families and this should not be happening; but regardless we acknowledge that there where young people are working they should enjoy the full protection of our employment law.”

“Children are among our most vulnerable workers. There have been cases of exploitation of children on newspaper delivery runs and similar work. Some are contracted on commission and we believe are being paid as little as $2 or $3 an hour. This is blatant exploitation and should not be allowed.”

The Education Act 1989 provides safeguards as to what work a young person can do but only if they are employees. Contracts apart from employment agreements (and life insurance) cannot usually be enforced against under-18 year olds. “Rino Tirikatene’s Bill would fix these gaps. Additionally, young people would not be forced to undertake complex tax calculations as independent contractors,” says Sissons.

“Growing poverty and inequality mean that we hear stories of some families who need the money that their children can earn. This is not the mark of a society that cares for its most vulnerable.”

“The International Labour Organisation’s fundamental convention on Minimum Age (Convention 138) has not been ratified by (one of only two of the eight fundamental conventions that New Zealand has not ratified). This Convention sets out minimum age restrictions for work including a general minimum wage of 15 years and a minimum age of 13 years for specific light work (that will not harm development or schooling). We have been requesting that the Government ratify this convention.”

“We recognise that kids having a job is an important part of our cultural heritage, and is often an important step in a child’s development, but too often our youngest and most vulnerable are being exploited at work. We welcome the opportunity for Parliament to shore up protection for these vulnerable workers.”

“The CTU encourages parliament to use this opportunity to undertake a wider enquiry into the causes of, and protections for, young people working,” concludes Sissons.

ENDS

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