Sepuloni Carmel: Sleepover Wages (Settlement) Bill — First Reading 
Sepuloni Carmel: Sleepover Wages (Settlement) Bill — First Reading 
[Volume:676;Page:21480] 
CARMEL SEPULONI (Labour) 
: 
 I really want to refer back to Te Ururoa Flavell’s speech on the Sleepover Wages (Settlement) Bill. I enjoyed his words; there were words of compassion for those who require the carers and for those who are in the workforce. But I have to ask where the Maori Party was when the picket lines were out there. Where was the Maori Party when the discussions were taking place between the workers and the unions? Where was the Maori Party when the issue was going through the courts? There was silence from the Maori Party. We heard Mr Flavell congratulate Tariana Turia who is supposed to be our Minister for Disability Issues but unfortunately we heard nothing from her on this very important issue. 
As Labour’s spokesperson on disability issues it gives me great pleasure to speak on a bill that Labour indeed supports. National has dragged its heels along with its coalition partners the Maori Party and the ACT Party on this payout for far too long and now unless it is treated with urgency disability support workers may need to wait until next year for much-needed compensation. We applaud the workers and unions in the sector for the persistence and patience—incredible patience—that they have exhibited which has led to this court ruling and subsequent Government payout. I call the Maori Party out on this matter. Having done work on the non-regulated health workforce I know that a lot of these carers are Maori are Pacific and are new migrants and many of them are women. They are women who have families to look after and women who are on the minimum wage and in this case they are not even on the minimum wage. They are women who are attempting to look after their families but who are unable to do so because they are paid so poorly. So I do call the Maori Party out on this matter. It should have been much more vocal at the time when this case was going through rather than waiting until now when the fight has finally been won. 
Labour supports this bill as it provides disability support workers with fair pay and compensation for the essential services they provide to the most vulnerable people in our communities. The settlement reached will entitle disability workers in New Zealand to the full minimum wage for sleepover work compared with $3.77 an hour at present—$3.77 at present. Looking at that rate of pay I say it is no wonder that this ruling has been upheld by the courts whilst the National Government unnecessarily continued to stall the process of reaching a just outcome. The abysmal rates of pay for sleepover claimants mean that of those seeking compensation many will receive between $7000 and $10000 in back-pay for sleepover work carried out in the last 5 years. That money will mean a lot to those workers. To many people in the House tonight that is not a lot of money but to these particular workers it is a lot of money. It will mean not only a lot to them but also a lot to their families. 
Labour applauds the workers and unions in the sector for their persistence and patience which has led to the ruling that sleepovers are work. As my colleague Mr Grant Robertson said earlier it really is not accurate to describe this as a sleepover when at any time during the night these workers can be called upon to have to assist in some way or another. They have to have one eye open while they are undertaking this work and there is a sense of responsibility and accountability—a high level of responsibility and accountability—shown by these workers. 
We support ensuring that all working New Zealanders receive a fair working wage and this settlement will rectify the situation that these workers have found themselves in for now. What we do need to look at is actually increasing the minimum wage so that they are not on an abysmal $13 an hour and they can actually go up to at least a $15 an hour minimum wage—and Labour has promised that it will do that. Not only is a commitment to fair pay a boost for workers but it will provide people with disabilities and their families with the assurance that they will keep receiving good quality care from qualified and experienced staff—a repercussion that the Government seemed to neglect when calculating the cost of stalling. I have met with a number of people and organisations impacted by the Government’s inaction and I can say this bill will help to ease their extreme anxiousness and fear surrounding the care of their children and the retention of quality workers in the disability sector. 
As I said before the Government has already dragged its heels on the settlement for far too long and wasted valuable time and resources on fighting workers’ claims in both the Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court. It was fighting their claims fighting just claims. Just a year ago Tony Ryall was ruling out any back-pay for workers stating that the liability rested with the employer. Tony Ryall’s former excuse that a settlement would cost the Government $500 million has been shown to have been scaremongering as the compromise settlement is costing the Government a reasonable $120 million. [ 
Interruption 
] Absolutely as Darien Fenton has said that is only because the workers and the unions are being reasonable. The Government was willing to pull out all the stops for multinational Warner Bros so why was it so reluctant to give workers fair pay for a fair day’s work? 
We are grateful that National has finally heeded Labour’s call to treat this legislation with urgency and pass it before the House rises. This sector does essential work for our most vulnerable citizens and the way in which we treat our disability support workers reflects the value that the National Government places on those whom they care for. The Government’s reluctance to properly pay health and disability workers for the essential services they provide is symptomatic of the wider underfunding of the health sector. Although a compromise has now been negotiated it is more in line with National’s interests in election year than it is with the needs of disability support workers. Thank you.