Govt to impose lid on wage round ‘explosion’

Press, 11 February 1986, Page 1

Govt to impose lid on wage round ‘explosion’

By.

PATRICIA HERBERT

in Wellington

Guidelines will be used to keep the lid on the next wage round, to begin in October, says the Prime Minister, Mr Lange. This means the Government will probably declare a wage path, much as it did in 1984, because experience suggests unions and employers will be unable to agree on a figure in the tripartite talks.

It was in recognition of this disagreement that the Minister of Labour, Mr Rodger, and the Minister of Finance, Mr Douglas, discarded guidelines for the 1985-1986 round, now in its final stages. Instead they said the economy could not sustain increases above 12 per

cent. They relied on the good sense of the negotiators to take this warning on board, but it has proved an expensive experiment in free bargaining. The round has delivered what Mr Lange yesterday described as “an explosion of up to 40 per cent wage increases,” although most commentators put the general movement at about 20 per cent There are still some potentially bitter disputes brewing — notably in Air New Zealand, in the freezing industry, and in the secondary school and prison services. These were discussed by the Cabinet yesterday morning. Mr Lange was particularly scathing afterwards of the Air Line Pilots’ Association — its

“gas guzzling manoeuvres” and its negotiations with a merchant bank to underwrite “Operation King Pin,” a campaign enabling a strike of up to four months.

Mr Lange accused the pilots of “a form of gangsterism unparalleled from people who allege they are professionals.” He said such tactics were betraying any justice their cause might have. Condemning the disruption they were causing, he drew a distinction for lesser-paid workers. "If I were a kitchen hand somewhere taking home $lBO a week, I would be resentful if I took industrial action and were characterised as a gangster. But if I was taking home $6OO or $7OO

a week, I think it (the charge) could be fairly levelled at me,” he said. Mr Lange also fired salvoes at some other public sector groups. “There is a quite unreal perception in various parts of the State sector that the taxpayer is a bottomless purse,” he said. “I just want to give notice that the Govern-, ment is not prepared to be held to ransom by greedy people."

He referred particularly to the prison officers’ rejection of 20 per cent as a nil offer. This is the automatic movement guaranteed all State servants.

Mr Lange agreed that the large pay settlement achieved last month by the police had raised ex-

pectations. He said they had to put up with working conditions that neither secondary school teachers nor prison wardens were subject to — regular overtime, call backs and “grubby stuff.” He also acknowledged the impact of the Higher Salaries Commission review in causing the wage round to blow out, saying the 30 per cent-plus increases awarded to politicians had cost the Government any "moral authority” in pleading restraint “The fact is that we lost the power to be seen credibly hacking down some of this nonsense that has been going on,” he said.

Pilot’s reply, page 8