Resolution over Invercargill council workers' pay

A resolution has been made following today's meeting between the Public Service Association and the Invercargill City Council regarding the planned reduction of pay for ICC employees unable to work fulltime during Alert Level 3.

Last month, ICC staff were advised of pay changes via a newsletter penned by chief executive Clare Hadley.

It outlined ICC staff working fulltime would receive 100% of their pay. Those working part-time would get 75%, while those unable to work would receive only 50% of their wages. Employees were advised they could make up their wage shortfall by using annual leave.

PSA National secretary said today that the council agreed to not change the terms and conditions of PSA members without agreement from the union.

He said it was a stressful experience for council employees, but further talks were to be had with ICC tomorrow.

‘‘We can only represent those who belong to the PSA, so we strongly encourage any council worker concerned about their job security to contact our union and discuss how we can help.’’

An emergency Committee of Council meeting was held this morning; while it was held in public excluded, it was related to staff matters.

Mrs Hadley said negotiations with the PSA were ongoing and would not comment further.

She said last week the ICC executive leadership team had taken steps to ensure the council could continue to employ all staff, despite not being eligible for the Government’s wage subsidy scheme.