Fletcher Building staff say they feel pressured by short consultation timeframe

Thursday, 2 April 2020

Fletcher Building has asked workers to take a pay cut.

Fletcher Building staff are feeling pressured by the 5pm deadline to accept a pay proposal which could see incomes slashed by up to 70 per cent after the lockdown.

On Wednesday staff were given a 12-week pay proposal, where their pay would cut by 70 per cent after the lockdown, while senior executives, the chief executive Ross Taylor and those reporting directly to him, would take a 15 per cent pay cut. Taylor's base salary $2.05 million in the year to June 30 2019.

Fletcher is New Zealand's largest employer, with more than 18,000 employees.

According to the plan, starting next week non-working staff currently on special leave earning full pay would receive 65 per cent of their salaries until April 22. After this, staff pay would decrease to 50 per cent of base pay for a month, and then they would be paid 30 per cent of their income for the following month.

The government is warning unemployment could climb into the double digits as the fallout of Covid-19 continues.

A spokeswoman for Fletcher Building said staff had until 5pm on Thursday to consult on the proposal because of the 'rapidly evolving situation'.

'We are following up with our people to discuss options that they can consider as an alternative. However, we have made it clear that we are not in a position to continue to pay our people who are not working at 100 per cent of their usual pay.'

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Amalgamated Workers Union national secretary Maurice Davis said Fletcher Building's proposal was 'shocking and disgraceful' as the union had not been consulted, and staff felt pressured into accepting the proposal as they feared redundancy.

'Workers are being told if they don't take the deal they can take voluntary redundancy.'

A number of Fletcher Building employees and contractors who told Stuff they felt they were being forced into accepting the deal.

Staff have until 5pm Thursday to accept pay cuts or risk losing their jobs. (File photo)

Do you know more? Email anuja.nadkarni@stuff.co.nz

One employee Stuff agreed not to name said the situation felt like 'emotional blackmail'.

'I'm extremely disappointed with what they are offering and it really shows they don't care about staff at all, they simply take the money and run.

'The trouble is we aren't left with much of a choice other than to agree to this by 5pm or we then won't be part of it and won't get paid. I really feel like this is emotional blackmail.'

On Wednesday a Fletcher Building spokeswoman said from the March 26 to April 3 staff would be paid their full pay.

For the next two-and-a-half weeks they would receive 65 per cent of base their pay 'equating to a monthly average of around 80 per cent'.

E tū union member Joe Gallagher, who also represents some Fletcher staff, says that the unfairness is incredible.

'We expect companies to do the right thing and pay all workers 100 per cent of their average weekly earnings, especially companies like Fletchers who can easily afford it,' Gallagher says.

'It's frankly unbelievable that they want workers to take such a gigantic pay cut while the higher-ups, who earn up to half a million dollars a year, will take just a 15 per cent cut in their pay.'