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FIRST Union
Putting Workers First
FIRST Union is New Zealand's second-largest private sector trade union.
Formed in 2011 after the merger between the National Distribution Union and Finsec, FIRST Union represents 27,000 workers in the Finance, Industrial (Textile and Wood), Retail, Stores, Transport and Logistics sectors.
FIRST Union is also affiliated to the New Zealand Council of Trade Unions and runs several networks including the Union Network of Migrants, the Runanga, Fono and Womens' Committee. In 2015 FIRST Union launched Samoa First Union, Samoa's only private sector union.
Join FIRST Union today for higher pay, better conditions and more say at work.
FIRST Union - Latest News [Page 30]
Spectacular half-year result amid low wage
Thursday, 20 August 2015, 11:24 am | First Union
While the New Zealand Refining Company Limited posts a spectacular half-year profit , a union representing workers at the site is questioning whether a proposed 0.5% pay rise is all the company can afford. More >>
Warehouse New Lynn workers vote for strike action
Tuesday, 11 August 2015, 3:14 pm | First Union
In a strike ballot held at 3pm today, workers at the Warehouse New Lynn have voted for strike action. More >>
Industrial unrest spreads as Warehouse workers reject wage
Tuesday, 11 August 2015, 12:39 pm | First Union
Striking workers at the Warehouse Blenheim are calling on the company to live up to its own rhetoric and pay a decent wage, says FIRST Union organiser Dennis Maga. More >>
Workers at the Warehouse Manukau walk off the job
Thursday, 6 August 2015, 1:58 pm | First Union
Union members at the Warehouse Manukau are undertaking a “wildcat” strike* after rejecting the company’s measly offer of a 30 cent wage increase, says FIRST Union organiser Dennis Maga. More >>
Unemployment figures highlight “vulnerable” economy
Wednesday, 5 August 2015, 11:35 am | First Union
Figures released today revealing a rise in the unemployment rate demonstrate that the government’s mismanagement of the economy is keeping the country in a low-wage, high unemployment rut says FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid. More >>
Business “appalled” with government’s treatment of KiwiRail
Thursday, 30 July 2015, 10:20 am | First Union
The rail workers’ union is backing calls from Mainfreight chairman Bruce Plested for “more positive support for long-term rail infrastructure”, says Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) General Secretary Wayne Butson. More >>
Watered down health and safety bill
Friday, 24 July 2015, 2:21 pm | First Union
Despite major unions and many business associations uniting in a call for better health and safety standards, the select committee report into the Health and Safety Reform Bill reveals that the government has surrendered to pressure from a small ... More >>
Union calls for urgency over new laws to end child labour
Monday, 20 July 2015, 10:52 am | First Union
After receiving notification of what appears to be several child labour cases in Apia, Samoa First Union is reminding parents and employers that child labour is unethical and can even be illegal under local and international law. More >>
Disappointment as Westpac closes Ruatorea branch
Monday, 13 July 2015, 8:13 pm | First Union
After a spirited campaign to save Westpac Ruatorea, bank bosses have ignored the community and confirmed that the Ruatorea branch will close says FIRST Union national organiser Tali Williams. More >>
Proposed bus rosters put passengers at risk – union
Tuesday, 7 July 2015, 10:10 am | First Union
The unions representing bus drivers have filed an urgent claim in the Employment Relations Authority as NZ Bus, a bus provider for Auckland Transport, refuses to meaningfully consult over proposed rosters which could lead to driver fatigue and ... More >>
Foodstuffs confirms closures
Friday, 26 June 2015, 11:15 am | First Union
Foodstuffs has confirmed that it will close its Gilmours wholesalers in Henderson, Panmure and Rotorua as well as its Toops wholesalers in New Plymouth and Napier says FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid. More >>
Foodstuffs looks at closing its cash and carry stores
Wednesday, 24 June 2015, 9:30 am | First Union
Local supermarket giant Foodstuffs is proposing the closure of 5 of its 12 Gilmours and Toops food trade stores in the North Island, but FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid is questioning the business case to support the closures. More >>
New Zealand union goes global
Monday, 22 June 2015, 9:42 am | First Union
FIRST Union, New Zealand’s second largest private sector union, is going international with the launch of Samoa’s only private sector union, Samoa First Union. More >>
Port union welcomes LPC guilty plea over worker’s death
Thursday, 18 June 2015, 12:23 pm | First Union
The Rail and Maritime Transport Union (RMTU) is pleased Lyttelton Port Company (LPC) has pleaded guilty to charges laid by Worksafe over the death of port worker Brad Fletcher in August 2014. More >>
Secret trade negotiation a backdoor to deregulation
Thursday, 4 June 2015, 1:35 pm | First Union
Secret trade negotiation a backdoor to deregulation This morning’s leak of documents from the highly secretive Trade in Services Agreement (TISA) negotiations are a backdoor to widespread deregulation, according to FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid. ... More >>
Union and local community unite to keep open Ruatōria bank
Friday, 29 May 2015, 1:15 pm | First Union
Bank workers union and local community unite to keep open Ruatōria’s last bank More >>
Government must not abandon health and safety reform
Thursday, 28 May 2015, 12:46 pm | First Union
While resistance in the National Party caucus delays the passage of the Health and Safety Reform Bill, FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid says there should be no health and safety law exceptions for small businesses and farmers. More >>
Kenia Serrano to visit Auckland, June 10-12
Monday, 25 May 2015, 12:38 pm | First Union
Kenia Serrano is president of the Cuban Institute for Friendship with the Peoples (ICAP), which organises solidarity activities between Cuba and organisations and individuals around the world. She is a member of Cuba’s parliament. More >>
Budget 2015: Working people miss out - union
Thursday, 21 May 2015, 3:00 pm | First Union
Returning some of the income that was stolen from beneficiaries in National’s welfare cuts in 1991 is not an adequate way to address poverty or reduce inequality says FIRST Union General Secretary Robert Reid. More >>
Lending restrictions leave workers with high housing costs
Wednesday, 13 May 2015, 1:06 pm | First Union
FIRST Union is welcoming the Reserve Bank’s new lending restrictions for property investors in Auckland, but believes the Government should be doing more to address the multiple issues that feed into the problem of Auckland’s housing affordability. More >>
