Even before the Special Votes have been counted, there is a majority in the house for real change in New Zealand politics.
While the election result on Saturday night didn’t deliver an outright majority for a change of Government, a majority of New Zealanders voted against a status quo that has seen the rich get richer while living standards for the rest of us stagnate or decline.
There are many policies and positions that Labour, the Greens, and New Zealand First are proud to fight for. They include:
- a significant rise in the minimum wage
- a commitment to pay the Living Wage to workers in all core public services including those employed by contractors
- the rejection of the National Party’s pay equity bill which would make it harder for women to take equal pay claims
- 26 weeks paid parental leave
- better access to education for young people and people who need to retrain in a changing world of work
- opposition to asset sales
- making sure that trade agreements do not restrict our sovereignty
- stopping the exploitation of migrant workers which creates a ‘race to the bottom’ in wages and conditions as a competitive advantage for employers
- ending the casualisation of our workforce which allows employers to exploit vulnerable workers
- ending the discriminatory ‘starting out wage’ which allows bosses to underpay young workers even if they have the same responsibilities as others
- revitalising our regions through proper economic development and improved infrastructure.
We now wait upon New Zealand First leader Winston Peters to decide to move the country forwards, not backwards, for working people and our communities. Mr Peters ran a clear campaign for change and we hope he will honour the voters who put their faith in him to make the right decision for New Zealand.