CTU president Richard Wagstaff warned the “light touch” approach in the Government’s new AI strategy would do nothing to protect workers from the serious risks from AI. Lawyers representing unions have urged the Supreme Court to uphold a landmark Court of Appeal ruling that a group of Uber drivers were employees, entitled to benefits such as holiday pay and sick leave. ASMS says it’s frightening how close Health New Zealand came to axing a section of maternity beds at Wellington Hospital. Public servants say poor staffing is their biggest barrier to performance, and just 44 percent are confident their colleagues were hired based on merit. Treasury officials warned about the optics of excluding the CTU from the fiscal briefing lock-ups.
Union coverage
- CTU: Government unveils its first-ever national artificial intelligence strategy
- CTU: Treasury warned barring union from Budget lock-up ‘looks politically motivated’ (paywall)
- ASMS: Senior doctors’ union welcomes Health NZ U-turn on axing Wellington Hospital maternity beds
- ASMS: Anti-red tape bill a health risk, doctors say
- Workers First, E tū: Union lawyer says unwritten contracts between Uber drivers and passengers ‘a fairy story’ (paywall)
- Workers First, E tū: Uber court case: ‘What we want is minimum entitlements’
- NZALPA: Union explains support for pilot sacked over Covid-19 vaccine (paywall)
Employment
- Government wants unemployed people to help with flood clean-up
- Public servants’ views on staffing, stress and job satisfaction revealed in new survey
- Timaru lumberyard ordered to pay $450k after worker crushed to death
- Precarious low-pay work traps thousands of Aucklanders – study
- Working from home: ‘Flexibility regret’ vs long-term arrangements
- Minor crimes, low level assaults likely to never be investigated – Police association
Politics
- Dame Jacinda Ardern says she will give evidence at Covid-19 Inquiry (paywall)
- No climate change buy-outs in future, expert group tells government
- Conservation land use applications processed faster with help from AI
- Conservation group calls for Chatham Rise orange roughy fishery closure, bottom trawling ban
Te Ao Māori
- Co-ownership model paves unique path to homeownership for Pacific, Māori families
- Move to increase Māori participation in school board elections
- Pita Tipene stands for Northland Regional Council
Economics
- Reserve Bank holds Official Cash Rate at 3.25%
- House building costs rise at strongest rate in nearly two years, Cotality index shows
- Stats NZ will resume household inflation data release ‒ six months behind schedule (paywall)
- Daily Dispatch: Markets struggle to keep up with whipsawing over tariffs (paywall)