INDEPENDENT NEWS

BSC members agree premium above minimum wage for cleaners

Published: Tue 24 Jun 2014 10:08 AM
Building Service Contractors New Zealand members agree premium above minimum wage for cleaning staff
Members of Building Service Contractors of New Zealand (BSC) have agreed to pay their cleaning staff at least 35c per hour above the minimum wage.
The new Multi Employer Collective Agreement (MECA), agreed between the BSC and employees, establishes $14.60 per hour as the minimum hourly rate for cleaners working for BSC member companies.
The rate will come into effect from 4 August this year. It follows successful conclusion of the Multi Employer Collective Agreement (MECA) negotiations between BSC and the Service and Food Workers Union (SFWU).
The MECA also sets out agreed conditions regarding maximum daily and weekly hours cleaning staff should be expected to work, health and safety, holiday and sick leave and security of employment.
BSC chief executive Lillian Small said: “$14.60 per hour is the minimum rate cleaners and cleaning supervisors working for BSC members will be paid from 4 August. However, I am aware that a number of our members pay a higher rate.
“We are also aware there is a widespread perception that all cleaners are paid the minimum wage. That is simply not the case for BSC member companies.
“The MECA is a strong point of difference between companies which are members of BSC and those which are not. Businesses contracting a BSC member can be confident they are using a reputable company which treats its cleaning staff fairly, ensuring fair pay, reasonable hours and safe conditions.”
Ms Small said that the BSC and its members are committed to continue working toward a quality focused cleaning industry that has high ethical and corporate standards.
“All of our members also agree to abide by our industry code of practice and principles, meeting required standards in quality, service, training, health and safety, legal requirements, insurance, dispute resolution and employment conditions.”
Telecom Unleashes Super Fast Broadband Across North Island with Ultrafast Fibre
Telecom, soon to be Spark, announced today that it is launching Ultra Fibre Broadband for residential and business customers across Tauranga, Hamilton, Te Awamutu, Cambridge, Tokoroa, New Plymouth, and Hawera.
To bring the super fast broadband to homes and businesses across the Upper North Island regions, Telecom has partnered with infrastructure provider Ultrafast Fibre – adding broadband to the Corporate and School solutions launched earlier this year.
Telecom Ultra Fibre customers can choose from simple, competitively-priced, ultra-fast broadband plans. These range from an entry-level 40GB residential plan starting at $85 per month, right up to the “Giganaire” plan - offering unlimited broadband from $99 a month when bundled with one of Telecom’s Ultra Mobile plans.
Telecom Retail COO, Jason Paris said he was confident that residents in the UltraFast Fibre regions will be very happy with the experience UFB will give them.
“Customers who’ve made the move love it because it delivers a better quality internet experience than they receive on a standard copper line. With the best available consistency of speed to your home, this means a better gaming, TV and video streaming, downloading and uploading experience for users – particularly for families with multiple devices.
“For businesses, Ultra Fibre opens the door to greater use of cloud-based applications to improve business productivity. Other business applications such as video conferencing between offices or customers are a smooth as butter on Ultra Fibre. By adopting UFB, New Zealand business are also future-proofing themselves for technologies we can’t even imagine yet but that will come out over the next 5, 10, 20 years. After all, 15 years ago, how many of us had email access on our phones?” says Paris.
Jason Paris says that that the speeds Telecom offers fulfil the needs of most fibre customers and today’s residential offer complements the business fibre solution that Telecom launched to their corporate clients last year.
“Customers on Telecom’s Ultra Fibre can choose the speed range that suits them best from either our Ultra Fibre 30 or our Ultra Fibre 100 plans” says Paris.
Residents of streets where fibre infrastructure has been installed by UltraFast Fibre can sign up for Ultra Fibre online at Telecom.co.nz/addresschecker or by calling 123.
Wanganui residents who live in an Ultrafast Fibre area can expect Telecom Ultra Fibre Broadband to be available to them soon.
ENDS

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