NZ Workplace Relations June–July 2026
Read on for a summary of ER events.
To view the full article click on the title
17 June
RNZ has opened a voluntary redundancy scheme for the first time in its 100-year history following a $5 million annual budget cut announced in May 2026. The public broadcaster, with approximately 350 staff, is facing a total budget reduction of $18 million over four years. RNZ chief executive Paul Thompson said applications for voluntary redundancy would be considered against the need to retain necessary skills and knowledge within teams.
Fred A – More budget cuts! The public broadcaster is functioning on borrowed time. Quality and reliable news, in the future, is likely to happen via private establishments only.
19 June
Firefighters across New Zealand took another one-hour strike on 19 June, continuing weekly industrial action that has now stretched into its ninth month. The NZPFU said there have been no new offers from FENZ and negotiations remain stalled, despite facilitated bargaining in May. Firefighters have not received a pay increase since July 2023. Strike action is scheduled to continue with further stoppages planned.
Fred A – The ongoing dispute between NZPFU & FENZ is truly jammed up! It’s mainly about wages. The 2.2% per annum FENZ offer in May/June did not cut it. With the recent CPI jumping to 4.1% the situation is urgently calling for an enema!!. If the stalemate becomes the status quo, we could potentially have a new government with new players in place after 7 November.
2 July
The Employment Court has ruled that the Ministry of Education acted lawfully when it deducted pay from over 700 learning support staff during a partial strike in July 2025. The specialists — including speech language therapists, psychologists, and behaviour support advisers — had refused to take on new cases and work unpaid overtime but continued their contracted hours. The Ministry deducted 10 percent of their pay. NZEI argued the deductions were unlawful, but the Court found the Ministry could issue pay deduction notices before a strike began. The full three-judge bench decided the case was important enough to clarify the law on partial strike pay deductions. NZEI has announced it will appeal the ruling to the Court of Appeal.
Fred A – Classic case of “what you can vs what you should be doing”. Desperately required specialists and teaching support staff will surely be further alienated. This smacks of punishment rather that resolution!
11 July
The Tertiary Education Union has warned that the government’s proposal to allow a 6 percent fee increase in 2026 would push total tertiary education costs for domestic students more than 19 percent higher than 2024 levels. The TEU noted students face fee increases at nearly double the rate of general price inflation, which currently stands at 3.1 percent. Total student loan debt has reached $16.8 billion and is growing. The union said the cost increases risk deterring young New Zealanders from tertiary study and may accelerate the exodus of newly qualified workers to Australia and overseas.
Fred A – Not only is the cost of living sharply up, now the cost of tertiary education for young Kiwis is up by 19% since 2024.
16 July
The Green Party has introduced the Automatic Union Membership Members’ Bill, which would make union membership the default setting for new employees in workplaces covered by a collective agreement. Workers would retain the right to opt out if they choose. The bill includes free membership for one month for those automatically enrolled. Green Party workplace relations spokesman Teanau Tuiono said the change would strengthen workers’ collective voice and ensure more people have access to representation and support that unions provide. The proposal would restore New Zealand closer to employment settings that existed before the Employment Contracts Act 1991. The party says it will take the policy to the 2026 general election. Labour said it would release its full policies in due course.
Fred A- Automatic union membership for all is probably a step too far. Freedom of association allows for any individual in NZ to become a member of a union. If we then look outside of NZ, a simpler model could be – if union/s have a certain % membership in an enterprise, it then becomes compulsory to negotiate a collective agreement in that business. This % varies between 20% – 50%, depending on a governments labour philosophy.
17 July
More than 50 senior doctors employed as medical advisors at the Accident Compensation Corporation have announced three half-day strikes beginning 7 August over pay and employment protections. The Association of Salaried Medical Specialists said ACC has refused to offer personal grievance rights or protections for speaking publicly about patient safety concerns. Negotiations have been ongoing since December 2025. Since 2018, the consumer price index has increased 31 percent but pay rates for ACC medical advisors have increased only 4.2 percent. ACC said it supports its staff’s right to take action and will continue negotiating in good faith.
Fred A – Wages for nurses, doctors, teachers, laboratory specialists and others in the public sector are slipping alarmingly behind inflation. Keeping skilled staff in these sectors in NZ will become a major issue.
22 July
Around 2,700 workers at the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment held a one-hour stop-work meeting after rejecting a pay offer that falls below the 4.1 percent inflation rate. The PSA said negotiations were underway for over 10,000 public servants across MBIE, the Department of Internal Affairs, Corrections, and the Ministry of Social Development, all facing below-inflation offers. The largest group affected are immigration and visa officers, most earning around $70,000 annually. The union said the offer structure would also lengthen the time staff take to reach higher pay bands.
Fred A – The steep rise of the CPI rate (4.1%) is creating havoc for many employer negotiators who are still stuck with a 2% – 3% mandate range!
23 July
The Public Service Association has warned that the Employment Leave Bill, which passed its second reading in Parliament, will reduce the annual pay of more than 200,000 people. The bill replaces the Holidays Act 2003 and will strip overtime pay and other allowances from leave payments, particularly affecting workers with variable hours and shift workers. The PSA said the changes would worsen the impact of the cost-of-living crisis. The bill introduces hours-based accrual of annual and sick leave from the first day of employment. Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden said the new system would be simpler and more straightforward, giving employers confidence in calculations.
29 July
The Employment Leave Bill passed its third and final reading, repealing the Holidays Act 2003 and replacing it with the Employment Leave Act 2026. The new law will come into force on 6 August 2028, giving employers two years to rebuild their payroll systems. Under the changes, annual and sick leave will be accrued in hours from the first day of employment, with additional and casual hours receiving a 12.5 percent leave compensation payment instead. Workplace Relations Minister Brooke van Velden said the bill removed confusing conversions and delivered long-overdue reform. Labour and the Greens opposed the legislation, saying it would harm part-time and casual workers who would lose money and leave entitlements under the new system.
Fred A – A simpler and easier to use process for employers seems to be outweighed by the loss of money for some workers. A 2yr transition to the new system will no doubt be peppered with challenges.
Keep up to date on Key ER/IR Events in NZ
Read our other ERBUZZ articles here
More
articles
