This morning’s announcement by industry group Business NZ that it intends to renege on participation in the development of Fair Pay Agreements (FPAs) alongside the Council of Trade Unions (CTU) and Government represents an embarrassing turnaround and a conscious decision by business lobbyists to protect a low-wage economy, says FIRST Union General Secretary Dennis Maga.

"It seems Business NZ have given up on good faith negotiations on behalf of tens of thousands of workers and business owners and decided to go into spin mode to protect the status quo of easy exploitation and low wages," said Mr Maga.

"As well as pulling out of their commitment to work alongside unions across the workforce in developing these industry-level FPAs, Business NZ are now spreading misinformation about the proposed agreements and misrepresenting the kinds of people and businesses they might cover."

"Lifting the wage floor for workers in these industries is about creating a level playing field in industries where workers’ negotiating power has been eroded and the imaginary "hand of the market" has failed to correct working poverty and exploitation."

"Forestry, supermarkets and the bus industry are three examples of important sectors of our membership where FPAs could meaningfully address some of the systemic problems that set in during the economic restructures of the last two to three decades and have only worsened since."

"When Business NZ raises concerns that FPAs will ‘remove flexibility’ from business owners, they must mean the flexibility to pay unlivable wages, pit people against one another in the workplace and chip away at existing working conditions in a race to the bottom."

"Working people in this country are facing skyrocketing living costs while corporate profitability has hardly taken a dent - the status quo only benefits the incredibly wealthy, and likely only a very small subset of their own member businesses, who will be frustrated by this move."

"These comments should be seen for what they are - the beginning of a smear campaign in place of real participation - fear over ambition."

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