Nash Stuart: Employment Relations Amendment Bill (No 2) — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
Nash Stuart: Employment Relations Amendment Bill (No 2) — Instruction to Committee In Committee 
[Volume:668;Page:15447] 
STUART NASH (Labour) 
: 
 Let us be very very clear. We are debating the differing philosophies of the National Party and the Labour Party. That is fundamentally what this debate is all about. Perhaps the Employment Relations Amendment Bill (No 2) should be called the “Tory View on Employment Relations Bill”. When I talk about the different philosophies I mean that the party opposite is for the few; this party represents the many. That party stands up for the enfranchised; this party stands for those who are disenfranchised and often have no voice. 
I want to say three words: equality respect and dignity. To talk about the word “equality” I say that I was at a conference yesterday that discussed equality in New Zealand and how important it was. Learned professors took this bill and said that it stripped away equality and that the gap of inequality grew. It is the greatest impediment to economic and social growth in this country. It is the right of every person to representation and that is what unions do. Unions stand up for those who cannot stand up for themselves. They are a voice when silence reigns. They provide a voice for those who have not a voice for themselves. Perhaps this bill should be called the “Stripping Away Equality in Employment Relations Bill”. 
The second word is “respect”. At the conference yesterday learned professors said that the one major variable to inequality is a lack of respect. After nearly every single crime that is committed certainly violent crime the perpetrator stands up and says: “He dissed me. There was no respect. I felt disenfranchised.” This bill does not allow workers to be treated with respect. So perhaps this bill should be called the “Stripping Away Respect in Employment Relations Bill”. That is what this bill does. 
The third word is “dignity”. People in this country must be treated with dignity. The fact that they can be let go without being given any reason at all having their dignity stripped away and not being told why is an absolute travesty. Perhaps this bill should be called the “Stripping Away Dignity in Employment Relations Bill”. 
This bill is a travesty because it creates inequality for all workers by not allowing them the right to representation when they are unable to represent themselves. Taking away the rights of workers’ representatives to go on site is a great travesty to many workers in this country. The Hon Trevor Mallard asked what sort of country we want to live in. What sort of country do we want to bring our children up in? This bill does not allow for a country built on equality which is something we very much pride ourselves on. This bill strips away the respect of workers and it strips away the dignity of workers. 
When I heard Keith Locke say that the commencement date should be taken back 100 years I thought to myself as a student of history that that was a very good point. This bill does not drive innovation and it does not drive the workforce. It is a backward-looking step. It takes employment relations back to the time when there were no rights. This bill strips away the rights of workers. Perhaps we should call it the “Stripping Away the Rights of Employees in Employment Relations Bill” or perhaps the “Stripping Away the Rights of New Zealanders (When Seeking a Job) Bill”. That is what this bill does.