Brown Peter: Holidays Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
Brown Peter: Holidays Bill — Instruction to CommitteeCWH In Committee 
[Volume:614;Page:10535] 
PETER BROWN (Deputy Leader—NZ First) 
: 
 Basically New Zealand is a low-wage country when compared with Australia Britain and various other places in the world. Now we in this Chamber cannot change that. It is almost impossible to change that through any short-term solution. To a large degree the market dictates what is paid for our goods and services and what people are paid comes back to that. [ 
Interruption 
] The member here keeps muttering behind me. I do not know one area of expertise where New Zealanders are second-rate—not one. They lead the world in the industries I come from and they lead world expertise in a number of other areas also. 
I have to say that New Zealanders have difficulty getting paid what they are worth in their own country. If we cannot change the wage rates we can do something about the holiday entitlements and Part 2—the holiday and leave entitlements segment—attempts to do exactly that. 
That said I have to say that in general terms the bill is business-unfriendly. I have said that before and I would like to clarify just what I mean. Because of the effects of this bill there will be some employers who of necessity will have to pass the extra costs on; there will be some who will have to restrict their activity because of the extra costs; there will be some who will revert to employing people casually when normally they would have employed them permanently; and there will be other employers who will be easily able to absorb the costs. 
The employers that concern me are rest homes organisations like the IHC and the health boards. Will the Government help them come to terms with this bill? 
Lindsay Tisch 
: Good question for the Minister. Ask the Minister that. 
PETER BROWN 
: I do not know. The Minister might take a call and tell us that. 
The benefit of hindsight will point out the flaws in this bill and it will have to be tidied up but we believe it moves society in the right direction. There are a number of areas that concern us and I outlined them in our minority report. Basically these are the payment methodology; some automatic entitlements with sickness and bereavement leave that have been touched on here today and an underpinning lack of flexibility. In time all those things will have to be addressed more thoroughly than perhaps they have been in this bill. However we believe that the holiday legislation as it is needs to be tidied up and we think this bill moves in that direction. 
We believe that the Government will eventually have to look at a favourable tax regime for employers particularly for some small employers who will suffer some hardship as a result of this bill. New Zealand First will be advocating strongly for a favourable tax regime for employers—particularly employers who are prepared to employ people permanently rather than casually as a result of this bill. 
In summary we believe that this bill takes a few steps forward in the right direction but it also takes a few steps backwards. In essence we believe it is a positive move towards addressing some of the concerns that affect New Zealanders in terms of holidays and their entitlements to them. I listened intently to the costs tabled by some of the members who have spoken on this bill. I recognise that what they have said is basically true but we cannot move society ahead on the backs of low-paid workers and young people who have fewer holiday entitlements than we believe is generally fair. This country has to move ahead. Contrary to what the National Party says we have to treat our young people and low-paid people more fairly.