Lees-Galloway Iain: Minimum Wage and Remuneration Amendment Bill — In Committee 
Lees-Galloway Iain: Minimum Wage and Remuneration Amendment Bill — In Committee 
[Volume:654;Page:3897] 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY (Labour—Palmerston North) 
: 
 It is a great privilege to take a call on Part 2 of the Minimum Wage and Remuneration Amendment Bill. We have heard a lot this evening from Government members about choice and that is exactly what the amendment to add the word “remuneration” after the word “wage” in the title is about. So many people are unable to choose to take a waged job. The only thing available to them is a contract-rate job. Whether it is delivering pamphlets or undertaking home help there is a whole range of low-paid work that is offered under the guise of choice in a contract-type arrangement rather than as work that offers a paid wage and that has all the benefits of protection holidays and recourse if one’s employer treats one incorrectly or inappropriately. 
We get from the right the old chestnut of choice—such as the Work Choices arrangement that Australia so thoroughly rejected not long ago—and as we have talked about it comes down basically to a philosophical argument. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: If you like it so much leave! 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY 
: I have no desire to go to Australia. The member can head off there if he wants to. 
Hon Tau Henare 
: Stop talking about how wonderful it is. 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY 
: Actually I was not talking about how wonderful it is. I was talking about the appalling legislation under the guise of Work Choices that Australia had. I have no intention of heading to Australia. New Zealand’s Employment Relations Act is excellent legislation and long may it remain as it is without being watered down by this Government. Hopefully the Labor Government in Australia can steadily unwind the Work Choices legislation over there. I certainly would not head over there in a great hurry given the type of employment legislation there. 
Amy Adams 
: That’s a shame. 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY 
: Ms Adams probably thinks that is a shame. It must be a real pity to have to put up with having me on this side of the Chamber. 
Amy Adams 
: It is. 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY 
: I bet it is a real pain for National members to have a team such as Labour standing up against them every single day. It must get depressing. 
This bill is so necessary in order to give rights to those who are not able to choose a wage-bearing job and have to do contract work. Those people have so few rights. All the rights they would choose to have are taken away from them because they cannot get into non-contract work. This bill is absolutely necessary to provide a baseline of fairness to those people. They need some kind of fairness in their work situation and in their contracts. At the moment without legislation such as this there is a distinct lack of fairness. Fairness is what we need to see in jobs in this country. We need to see a Government that is committed to jobs and we need to see a Government that is committed to fairness in its employment relations legislation. 
The bill as a whole is about protecting workers in hard times. It is important that all workers even in an economic downturn like this one are afforded a fair working environment and have an opportunity to earn a fair living wage. We have so many people on low wages who are unable to make ends meet and that situation will get harder and harder in these economic times. 
The bill sets out a pathway for moving towards a $15 minimum wage. That $15 is not just an amount picked out of thin air— 
Hon Tau Henare 
: Yes it is. 
IAIN LEES-GALLOWAY 
: It is not an amount that is picked out of thin air. If Mr Henare knew anything about the International Labour Organization he would know that that organisation sets a benchmark of two-thirds of the median wage for the minimum wage. In New Zealand that is a little more than $15 but $15 is a reasonable rate that this bill will set us on a pathway towards. It is about fairness.