Operator News
New Zealand – SkyCity staff to strike in Auckland over pay for ‘unsociable hours’
By Phil - 17 September 2019
Over 850 members of staff at New Zealand operator SkyCity have voted to strike in Auckland in the hope it will convince the operator to pay more for working unsociable hours.
Almost 900 of the casino’s employees are members of Unite Union with 97 per cent voting for strike action from August 31 to September 1.
Lead negotiator and Unite National Secretary Gerard Hehir said: “SkyCity needs most of its workers at weekends and nights and makes most of its income during that time — but prefers to use the ‘stick’ rather than the ‘carrot’ to get staff at these times. Apparently, incentives are only for very highly-paid executives at SkyCity. No one disputes that there have to be shifts at weekends and nights. The issue is SkyCity should be encouraging staff who can choose to work those shifts — recognising that not all hours are equal.”
The union has offered concessions on their claim but SkyCity has so far completely rejected any movement on the issue.
SkyCity site convenor Joe Carolan said: “This year the union has fought three restructures forcing workers to work the unpopular night and weekend shifts Workers are sick of the stick and no carrot, especially since many remember weekend and night rates before politicians and companies took those away. If we win this at SkyCity, we say to the government: this is a right that all workers in New Zealand should have again. It is time we undid the damage of the early 1990s and brought back the weekend.”
In Adelaide, Australia, SkyCity’s workforce, which numbers around 1,000 staff already have these concessions with time and a half, double time and even triple time for unsociable hours.
