You can also read this newsletter as a PDF: ManaMahi Spring/Summer 2008 Issue (PDF 424KB)

Nga mihi nui ki a koutou

Welcome to the fourth and final issue for 2008 of Mana Mahi, a panui we produce to keep you up to date with what is happening with the Workplace Wellbeing Project, and with employment relations issues and events in the tangata whenua, community and voluntary sector.

For the remainder of 2008, we have organised a number of exciting events and opportunities for sector employers and managers to add to their toolkit of skills and knowledge about best employment practice in our sector.

This includes the launch of our new employment resource for sector organisations - also called Mana Mahi. Following an initial launch at the Australia New Zealand Third Sector Research Conference in Auckland in late November, Mana Mahi will be launched at seminars in Hamilton, Wellington and Christchurch.

At these seminars, people will have the chance to network with other employers, managers and practitioners in our sector - and also to meet Glyn Hawker, from UNISON Scotland, a community development worker by trade who now works with employers, umbrella groups and unions in the Scottish community and voluntary sector to promote better and fairer funding for Scottish sector organisations and their staff. Workplace Wellbeing is supporting Glyn's visit to New Zealand and we hope that it will generate plenty of new conversations about how we can better highlight and promote the value of the work we do in our sector.

How DO We Value the Work of Our Sector?

For the cover of Mana Mahi, we chose the Mango Pare kowhaiwhai design. Used in many meeting houses across Aotearoa, this design celebrates the strength and power of a shark when faced with danger, both characteristics needed by a warrior in the heat of battle. The koru is also often associated with nurturing, so when interlocked with others, is frequently used to represent the strength of loving family relationships.

The Mango Pare design was chosen for our resource in recognition of the strength, power and value of the nurturing work that sector organisations undertake every day in communities throughout New Zealand.

How we value the work of our sector has over the past few years become a defining issue. For many, the issue - and the focus of our last editorial - is about pay parity. Indeed, as Strategic Pay's not-for-profit sector remuneration surveys show, the gap between what people are paid in our sector and the public sector continues to grow. At last count, the gap was, on average, about 18%. This has serious implications for our ability to retain staff and provide decent services, as evidenced by the crises now occurring in disability services and aged care.

Clearly, pay parity is an issue. As we will discuss at the forthcoming seminars, a recent survey of staff in one large sector grouping showed that while around 73% of staff would still do the same job even if they were paid significantly more, about 65% of them felt their incomes did not provide enough financial security.

Arguments for pay parity provide a clear focus for highlighting the glaring disparities between wage levels in our sector and the effects on our ability to retain staff and deliver quality services.

However, arguments about the value of the sector should not hinge entirely on issues of pay parity. To only use the public sector as a focus for valuing our own work potentially does our sector a disservice.

We in the tangata whenua, community and voluntary sector spend too much time defining ourselves in terms of what we are not: NON-government, NOT for profit… pseudo-providers at one arm's length from the public service, but fundamentally no different from it.

We are bigger and better than this.

Work in the tangata whenua, community and voluntary sector utilises a complex range of skills and responsibilities. Employers and employees alike deal with a very wide range of relationships. Employees in our sector are very skilled generalists - which makes them very attractive recruitment prospects.

Therefore - with the greatest respect to public sector employees - comparing sector roles with public sector ones may actually undervalue the sector's work.

It is time that we began to value our work on its own terms. As values-based organisations with a caring kaupapa, it is becoming increasingly important that sector organisations operate from a strong values base, highlighting our role in our communities, and not competing with each other to become the cheapest service deliverer.

As a sector we must start to make more visible the real value of the work we do - work that is complex, highly skilled - and mostly done by women. Issues of pay parity can then be viewed within the broader context of how our role is seen and valued by ourselves, and by the wider community.

The next government, whatever shape it takes, needs to recognise the value and uniqueness of the sector and its role in our communities - and fund us accordingly.

Sector Employment Seminars: Valuing the Work of Our Sector

Join us for an informative and stimulating seminar on sector employment, brought to you by the Workplace Wellbeing Project.

Mana Mahi, the new one-stop employment resource for community organisations, will be launched at this seminar and participants will receive a free copy to take away with them.

The seminar will also include a range of presentations on valuing the work of the sector, including:

• A keynote address on the Scottish community and voluntary sector by visiting guest speaker, Glyn Hawker
• Findings from recent New Zealand research on sector staff wellbeing and motivation
• Case studies and trials of job evaluation tools - how can they be used to build a case for better and fairer funding?
• Strategic Pays' Not for Profit Sector Remuneration Survey

Who should attend: Board members, trustees and managers of community-based organisations. People are encouraged if possible to come in pairs - eg, one governance member and their manager - however individuals, other staff and additional governance members may also attend. Groups welcome.

Time: 10.30am - 4.30pm

Cost: $40 per person - includes lunch and a copy of Mana Mahi

Sector Employment Seminars: Locations and Dates

Hamilton, Thursday November 27
Venue: Community Waikato, 33 Victoria Street
Contact: Sally Ridley, 07 838 1583 or email sally[at]communitywaikato.org.nz

Wellington, Wednesday December 3
Venue: Wellington City Council Meeting Room
Contact: Lena Longman, 04 472 3364 or email lenavlast[at]nzcoss.org.nz
nb: Wellington seminar starts 11am

Christchurch, Thursday December 4
Venue: Avebury House, Richmond
Contact: Sharon Torstonson, 03 366 2050 or email ccoss[at]ihug.org.nz

Mana Mahi: What's In It?

Mana Mahi is a new, one-stop employment relations resource designed specifically for tangata whenua, community and voluntary sector organisations.

Topics covered include:

• Good employment practice in our sector
• Guide to employment law
• Employment Relations Act
• Employment agreements
• Human Rights Act
• Treaty of Waitangi
• Minimum employment rights
• Pay and employment equity
• Work-life balance
• Training and supervision
• Health and safety
• Performance management
• Managing employment relationship problems
• Mediation
• Unions
• Employment practices liability insurance
• A sample employee handbook, and many other useful examples and checklists

For more information, contact Conor Twyford, Resource Officer for the Workplace Wellbeing Project, at ere.project[at]gmail.com

New Zealand Needs a Robust Youth Workforce, and that Needs Funding

- 7/10/2008

A group of leading New Zealand youth development organisations is warning there is an urgent need for government funding to provide the best and brightest with clear career paths, or we risk losing them.

An alliance representing the Foundation for Youth Development, YMCA and Youthline, say youth work is a specialist field with its own set of skills that are essential for working effectively with young people. "A lack of a formal definition of roles within the youth sector in the past has meant the workforce has lacked resources, training and clear career paths. It has also created a perception that those who work with young people do not have an equal standing with other professionals," says YMCA New Zealand CEO Ric Odom.

"However, these traditional views of working with young people are being replaced. There is a need for well resourced and skilled people in all professions who bring a passion, specific expertise and abilities to their work with young people."

This requires a concerted effort at a political level, says the alliance, which is calling upon government to allocate a core fund to assist with the specialised training of youth workers.

www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0810/S00098.htm

Meal Breaks & Infant Feeding Rights Become Law

- 5/09/2008

Parliament this week passed legislation guaranteeing minimum tea and lunch breaks, and provisions for women to breastfeed at work. From 1 April 2009 employers will be required to provide regular rest and meal breaks, as well as appropriate facilities and breaks for employees who wish to breastfeed or express.

"The law fills a big gap in our minimum employment provisions. It will contribute to standards of decency at work, mother and baby health, and will improve workplace health and safety," Council of Trade Unions President Helen Kelly said. The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) also welcomed the new law. NZNO's Cee Payne said: "Providing for meal breaks in law is essential to ensure healthy workers and good patient care."

Aged Care Petition - 10,000 Strong And Calling for Safe Staffing

- 29/08/2008

Aged care workers this week presented a petition of over 10,000 people calling on Government to legislate for mandatory staffing levels - to make rest homes and aged care hospitals not only safe places for workers, but also safe places for the elderly. The New Zealand Nurses Organisation (NZNO) and the Service and Food Workers Union (SFWU) are calling on the government to put in place minimum staffing levels in residential aged care facilities. Currently there are no minimum requirements.

"The guidelines for staffing levels currently in place mean our providers are not required to staff facilities at a level that is safe, especially considering the level of care that the elderly need," said Vee Bryce, an experienced caregiver working in a residential aged care facility. "Surely the urgent need for mandatory staffing levels based on what the residents need makes sense. This is about keeping the elderly safe." Nurses union CEO Geoff Annals said: "A deliberate strategy to ensure older New Zealanders get the care they deserve is long overdue. The only way to ensure that happens is to regulate staffing numbers, address low pay, and provide training and support to the workforce."

Workplace Wellbeing at ANZTSR

Workplace Wellbeing is proud to present a work stream of presentations at the Australia and New Zealand Third Sector Research Conference. Focused on sector employment issues, these include:

• A Roundtable on sector employment, "Envisioning Successful Employment in Our Sector". Participants will include the Executive Director of the New Zealand Federation of Voluntary Welfare Organisations, the National Secretaries of the Service and Food Workers Union and the PSA, the Director of the Department of Labour's Pay and Employment Equity Unit, and the Chief Executive of Trust Waikato
• Presentations on job evaluation tools and remuneration surveys
• A presentation on high-performing work systems and their relevance for our sector
• A keynote from visiting guest speaker, Glyn Hawker, from UNISON Scotland.

We look forward to a lively and engaging debate!

IHC joins disability sector wrangle

- 1/09/2008

Unless the Ministry of Health adequately funds disability providers, the sector will face a serious funding shortfall that puts its ability to provide services at risk. IHC supports comments by NZCare and NRID, which represents residential disability providers, that the sector is in crisis because of a funding shortfall. IHC chief executive Ralph Jones said that providers are trying to survive in the face of wage rise expectations, and rent, food and fuel cost increases.

For example, NZCare is facing wage claims for an average 23 percent pay increase, and a funding increase of just 1.5 percent from the Ministry of Health. "I have alerted the Ministry many times over the past five years that there is a looming wage crisis in the sector that requires its attention.

It is now coming to a head. "The sector would like to show we value our staff through the amount we pay them," says Ralph. "But we are constrained by the amount the Ministry gives us."

www.scoop.co.nz/stories/GE0809/S00005.htm

Disability Sector Compromised by Health Funding Levels

- 28/08/2008

NRID, representing over 48 residential disability providers across New Zealand, is concerned about the situation facing NZCare in the current wage negotiation impasse with the PSA.

Many disability sector service providers face major challenges as they try to make ends meet in the face of wage rise expectations and rent, food and fuel cost increases. There is considerable evidence of Ministry of Health funding rises not keeping pace with the costs of meeting the care and support needs of people who experience intellectual or physical disability. The nature of this sector crisis was highlighted in a recently released Deloitte analysis.

There is positive engagement with the Ministry of Health to build a transparent pricing model but the process of building an acceptable funding formula is taking too long.

NRID service providers recognise that pay parity issues are leading to major health and disability service inequities. Over recent years wage payments for workers in DHB equivalent positions have increased at much greater rates than those for similar disability sector roles. Current funding levels are not sufficient for the disability sector to compete and wage relativity is suffering. Resulting low staff morale and high staff turnover make consistent and safe service provision even more difficult.

There is clear evidence that the level of demand for many disability services and the complexity of need particularly involving challenging behaviour is increasing. If the sector cannot afford the right staff with the skills and experience to consistently meet the range of people with disability related needs, then it will not just be NZCare that faces industrial challenge. This is the second significant disability sector industrial dispute this year.

www.scoop.co.nz/stories/PO0808/S00387.htm

"Working for Effective Employment Relations" workshops

Over 250 managers, governance members and staff attended one of our "Working for Effective Employment Relations" workshops in 2008.

But there is much more of Aotearoa we have yet to cover! Planning is now underway for the 2009 itinerary, and we hope to announce the dates and locations for those workshops early in the New Year.

Likely locations include New Plymouth, Hawera, Tauranga, Hokitika, Masterton, South Auckland and more.

To inquire about hosting a workshop in 2009, email Conor Twyford at ere.project[at]gmail.com

Australia and New Zealand Third Sector Research Ninth Biennial Conference: DEMONSTRATE!

Auckland, 24-26 November
AUT City Campus, Wellesley St

ANZTSR is a community-driven conference bringing issues of research in the third sector to the fore with a celebration of diversity, multi-sectoral and multi-cultural dimensions.

The programme includes contributions from grassroots researchers, consultants, and academics. The conference focus is to DEMONSTRATE and CELEBRATE the contribution community researchers and their research make to the wellbeing of people and planet.

Follow the links to the conference site to see the themes and the Provisional Agenda on www.anztsr.org.au or just Google ANZTSR.

REGISTER TODAY to secure your place!

For more information contact:
Amy - amy[at]flowevents.co.nz
Maria - mariah[at]waikato.ac.nz

Workplace Wellbeing is a sector-driven, sector-owned collaboration between the NZ Council of Social Services, the NZ Federation of Voluntary Welfare Organisations, Community Waikato and the Service and Food Workers Union Nga Ringa Tota. The project's strategic goal is to promote and support good employment practices and relationships in our sector.