Members across the union rallied behind the campaigns, attending online webinars; joining up new
colleagues; wearing green, pink and orange; and sharing messages of support for those who were in bargaining.

Delivering real benefits

Our campaigns are now beginning to deliver real benefits, with members in over a dozen organisations ratifying new collective agreements containing pay increases and improvements to working conditions.

For members in public service departments and the state sector, these improvements have been underpinned by the public service pay adjustment agreed between the PSA and the government last September. The negotiations were spearheaded by the CTU. The agreement provides for a common flat-rate adjustment
to salaries while also allowing other issues, including addressing longstanding pay inequities experienced
by members in some workplaces, to be bargained at the same time.

The PSA is continuing to press Ministers to extend the coverage of this agreement to workers in community public services where the Government as funder effectively sets the envelope employers have available to also increase pay as the cost of living rises. Most recently PSA National Secretaries have had meetings with the new Prime Minister Chris Hipkins, Public Service Minister Andrew Little and Health Minister Ayesha Verrall about agreeing a process to deliver improved pay for community-based workers.

Hard-won wins

Recent settlements members have ratified have been hard won and included both increases to base rates and member-only lump sums which recognise the benefit employers gain from being able to bargain collectively with the PSA. Every settlement has also included a range of agency-specific improvements. As a result of hard work by your bargaining teams there has been high engagement by members during ratifications, which have been strongly supported.

Agencies where members have ratified agreements include MFAT, NZQA, Oranga Tamariki, Statistics New Zealand and the Ministry of Education. At Oranga Tamariki, a new protocol for dealing with high social work caseloads is included, while at the Ministry of Education a new section in the collective agreement is devoted to Kaimahi Māori which is precedent-setting and provides a number of entitlements and provisions to honour and acknowledge the work of Māori public servants.

Revised pay guidance

These agreements provide the impetus for upcoming negotiations with other agencies as existing agreements expire. As we went to press, Te Kawa Mataaho the Public Service Commission published revised pay guidance which provides a refreshed framework for employers to use in upcoming pay talks. Following advocacy from the PSA, the new guidance acknowledges the case for continued movement on pay, particularly but not only for the lowest paid, and to close ethnic and gender pay gaps which members have asked to be prioritised.

We will also continue to bring to the bargaining table agency-specific issues with pay and conditions that
members want to see addressed alongside seeking cost of living improvements.

‍