Living Wage Movement Aotearoa New Zealand, nathaniel@livingwage.org.nz
CAFCA is a paying member of the Living Wage Movement. The CAFCA/ABC Organiser, Murray Horton, is paid the Living Wage. Ed.

In 2021 Christchurch City Council (CCC) became the fourth city in New Zealand to gain Living Wage Accreditation. From now on, every time a CCC contract rolls over or new staff are hired, those workers can be sure that their pay will be enough to raise a safe, healthy family. As the cost of living increases, their pay will increase automatically each year, without the need for lengthy and uncertain bargaining. It took years of campaigning to get CCC Living Wage Accredited, and it sounds like the battle has been won.

But there's a catch. Due to a corporate restructure almost 30 years ago, hundreds of workers at Council-controlled organisations (CCOs) are beyond the reach of Living Wage Accreditation. Security guards at Lyttelton Port; cleaners at Christchurch Airport; gardeners at City Care. Many of these workers are still on the minimum wage, and none of them is guaranteed a salary that keeps pace with inflation. These workers are immune to Council oversight, and this is no mistake. Our city's structure was designed to keep the conditions of these workers out of democratic control.

Back in 1993, at the height of an international outsourcing frenzy, Christchurch Councillors decided they needed a "non-political buffer between the Council and the companies it owned". They created Christchurch City Holdings Limited (CCHL), where "a commercial approach is taken to managing the interface with the Council's companies". In other words, CCC cordoned off many of its core services - waste management, property development, maintenance, port and airport, electricity infrastructure - in such a way that allowed them to pocket the dividends without taking political responsibility for corporate decisions.

Dragging The Chain

25 years later, in 2018, the Living Wage Movement tried for the first time to push through that "non- political buffer" and ensure CCHL workers were fairly paid. In their annual Letter of Expectation, CCC ordered CCHL directors to investigate the implementation of the Living Wage. But in each following year, CCHL's Annual Report would be sent out with a big green tick next to the Living Wage Ask, along with a little caveat: we haven't done anything yet; but we're definitely looking into it!

In the four years since that request was first made, the Living Wage has risen by more than $3 p/h. CCC has become accredited. But we're still far away from those port, airport and maintenance workers receiving pay security. So, at the 2022 Living Wage Local Election Forum on September 14, we're going to take a stronger line. We're going to be asking Mayoral candidates to commit to a shareholder letter of expectation that contains an explicit request for accreditation with an unequivocal deadline.

Even in this watered down, corporatised structure, CCC still has the power to influence CCHL decisions. And most importantly, they have the power to hire and fire CCHL directors. That is real power, and we want Christchurch's next Mayor to use it. If you'd like to join our campaign, please help us to organise an election forum that is loud, proud and powerful.