working conditions

“National’s Employment and Workplace Relations Policy is a gift to employers wrapped in the language of 'reasonableness',” said Laila Harré, National Secretary of the National Distribution Union in response to the release of the policy today.

Independent Wellington retailer Unity Books has helped to trial a proposed new chapter in creating a more flexible workplace, with initiatives including job sharing and working from home.  Two Labour Department workplace toolkits were launched yesterday, which provide advice on issues such as job sharing, holidays, leave and roster management.

Unity bookstore co-owner and manager Tilly Lloyd hit upon a staffing solution to a business downturn.  Ms Lloyd said that, when the Willis St store's rent was increased about the same time that global book chain Borders opened up in competition in Wellington, she was forced to reduce one staff member's hours.

The only difficulty the staff member had, was that the revised hours clashed with band practice.  "So I said, `Why don't you have your practice here?"'  She offered a storeroom for the band rehearsals each week.  Another staff member was able to bring her preschool-aged daughter into work at weekends and arrive a little later if she was leaving her at a creche during the week.  "It seems important to me that the harmony and happiness of staff is really vital," Ms Lloyd said.

Labour Minister Ruth Dyson and Small Business Minister Lianne Dalziel launched the Labour Department initiative at the bookstore yesterday.  Ms Dyson said that in a tight labour market with low unemployment, employers were faced with staff recruitment and retention problems.  She doubted any "purely hypothetical" change of government would be able to overturn a business approach that research had shown was now expected in the workplace.  The Labour Department surveyed a range of New Zealand businesses and organisations for 18 months to determine how they made job flexibility work for them.  "It's clear that employees support flexible work," Ms Dyson said.

Most employees prefer the money to other sorts of rewards, up sharply from a year ago partly because of rising household costs, according to a survey yesterday.

Sixty-nine per cent of employees surveyed by Hays preferred financial rewards, with 16 per cent favouring non-financial rewards and 15 per cent preferring internal recognition.  That was up from 42 per cent of employees preferring financial rewards a year earlier.

"Business activity has increased and people are generally busier in their jobs," said Jason Walker, regional director of Hays in New Zealand.

"Coupled with the knowledge that we are in a candidate short market, and given higher grocery, petrol and mortgage costs, employees' emphasis has moved to cash payments rather than non-cash benefits," he said.

Non-financial benefits such as gym memberships or movie vouchers were still important rewards.  "It's also not just about the obvious rewards, financial or otherwise.

"Rewards are just one element of a good retention strategy and acknowledgement of an employee's contribution, career opportunity, the provision of new challenges, the opportunity for training and development, salary reviews and the influences of strong management are all equally important elements," Mr Jason said.

The online survey was completed by 1881 people.