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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 6]
Outlier Councils Now Lagging Behind Effective National Pay Rate For Bus Drivers
Tuesday, 11 October 2022, 9:06 am | FIRST Union
Following confirmation this week that Bay of Plenty (Regional) Council are the latest region to approve pay increases for bus drivers to effective national rates of $28 per hour, FIRST Union is now calling on the remaining councils including Northland, ... More >>
Free Kimchi-topped Hotdogs For Truck Drivers In The Name Of Safety
Tuesday, 27 September 2022, 6:08 am | FIRST Union
FIRST Union is giving away free kimchi-topped hotdogs to truck drivers at a pop-up truck stop in Onehunga today, in a show of solidarity with drivers in South Korea fighting to safeguard and advance their "Safe Rates" system, which sets ... More >>
Gib Board Truck Drivers Walk Off The Job For Wage Increases
Tuesday, 20 September 2022, 6:06 am | FIRST Union
FIRST Union members at CV Compton Ltd in Penrose walked off the job today to improve their wage offer. The gib board transportation company had offered a range of iwage increases starting as low as 1%. FIRST Union spokesperson, Emreck Brown said "CV ... More >>
FIRST Union, Fuel Tanker Truck Drivers At SouthFuels Limited Have Issued A Strike Notice
Tuesday, 30 August 2022, 1:02 pm | FIRST Union
FIRST Union, Fuel tanker truck drivers at SouthFuels Limited have issued a strike notice. The strike will last two months, beginning on 12 September and will last until 12 November 2022. FIRST Union Drivers are striking for equal conditions - under ... More >>
Moratorium Needed On Disastrous ‘Sector Agreements’ Proposal
Tuesday, 23 August 2022, 7:14 am | FIRST Union
FIRST Union is calling for a moratorium on planned ‘sector agreements’ while real consultation on the controversial policy is carried out with unions and affected workforces, cautioning that the short-sighted migration changes will drive down wages ... More >>
Sector Agreements: "We Never Would Have Supported This"
Monday, 22 August 2022, 9:07 am | FIRST Union
The so-called sector ‘agreements’ concerning migrant labour announced yesterday will undermine wages and conditions in key sectors and would have never been agreed to if actual consultation had taken place, according to FIRST Union General Secretary ... More >>
Bus Drivers Celebrate Path To Public Ownership
Wednesday, 17 August 2022, 5:13 pm | First Union
The announcement that the new Sustainable Public Transport Framework (SPTF) will provide a pathway towards public ownership of our bus services is an important first step that has taken years to negotiate, and it is being welcomed by bus drivers, ... More >>
Wellington Free Ambulance Suggests Pay Cut During First Responder Crisis
Wednesday, 10 August 2022, 7:15 am | FIRST Union
Bargaining between Wellington Free Ambulance and FIRST Union ambulance officers has been cut short by the employer following an effective offer of a 6% pay cut for frontline responders, and strike action is under consideration in the capital, said ... More >>
A Labour Market Correction, Not A Wage-price Spiral
Wednesday, 3 August 2022, 11:35 am | FIRST Union
Labour market data out today confirms that the tight labour market is finally giving workers across the economy the pay increases they deserve. "The 6.4% annual increase in the average wage is good news for workers, who are struggling with a ... More >>
South Island Timber Workers Strike For Decent Living Wages
Monday, 25 July 2022, 11:41 am | FIRST Union
Workers at a large Nelson timber processing plant made the snap decision to strike today to fight for decent pay that is locally competitive and will attract and retain staff at the sawmill. Around 60 E tū and FIRST Union members at South Pine in Nelson ... More >>
Ambulance Officers Call For Public Ownership On First International Paramedics Day
Friday, 8 July 2022, 6:39 am | FIRST Union
On the first ever International Paramedics Day , ambulance officers at St John and Wellington Free Ambulance are petitioning for the service to be returned to public ownership as part of current health system restructures, amid rising concerns about ... More >>
Aucklanders Overwhelmingly Support Fare Free Public Transport
Wednesday, 29 June 2022, 12:28 pm | First Union
New polling out this morning confirms that Aucklanders overwhelmingly support fare free public transport. These results follow the release of a report jointly co-commissioned by FIRST Union and the NZ Public Service Association Te Kauae Kaimahi, making the ... More >>
Fare-free Transport Crucial To Tāmaki Makaurau’s Pandemic Recovery
Monday, 27 June 2022, 5:55 am | FIRST Union
FIRST Union and the NZPSA have today released a report making the case for fares-free public transport for Tāmaki Makaurau. The 40-page report draws on lessons from overseas experiences with fare-free public transport, and sets out different models for implementing ... More >>
‘Safe Rates’ For Drivers Will Make Our Roads Safer For Everyone
Tuesday, 21 June 2022, 2:30 pm | FIRST Union
Unregulated competitive tendering in the trucking industry is driving unsafe driving behaviour in Aotearoa that leads to road accidents and fatalities, according to FIRST Union. "Within 48 hours of the major accident in Picton this week, there have ... More >>
Budget 2022 A Chance To Put Labour Values Into Action
Wednesday, 18 May 2022, 4:36 pm | FIRST Union
Tomorrow’s Budget 2022 is an opportunity to demonstrate Labour’s values in action and must address the high cost of living faced by working people while increasing investment in public services and committing to return key infrastructure like buses ... More >>
Kiwifruit Workers At Seeka Call For Secure Wages In New Agreement
Friday, 29 April 2022, 10:26 am | FIRST Union
Workers at Seeka, the largest kiwifruit producer in New Zealand and Australia, have written to the company to seek assurances during bargaining for a new Collective Agreement that there will be no wage reductions at the end of the harvest in June. ... More >>
Reality Of Kiwifruit Wages Not What Industry Claims
Thursday, 31 March 2022, 10:00 am | FIRST Union
Recent claims by kiwifruit employers that wages are now as high as $60 an hour are ‘total nonsense’ says FIRST Union, whose representatives are currently in collective bargaining with industry leader Seeka. Negotiations have revealed that most workers ... More >>
Social Income Insurance Scheme Provides Crucial Protection For Workers
Friday, 25 March 2022, 10:03 am | FIRST Union
"The tripartite agreement between business, Government and unions regarding the creation of a Social Income Insurance scheme is crucial to support people when they need security most, and proposed the scheme is a necessary step towards a better ... More >>
Commerce Commission Report Highlights Opportunity To Fix Supermarkets’ Real Problems
Wednesday, 9 March 2022, 10:31 am | FIRST Union
Yesterday’s report back from the Commerce Commission into Aotearoa’s supermarket duopoly of Countdown and Foodstuffs may have stopped short of recommending a breakup of the brands, but it has exposed important opportunities for reform that would enable ... More >>
No Reason To Underpay New Zealand Countdown Workers Any More
Monday, 7 March 2022, 12:19 pm | FIRST Union
With confirmation that workers from Australia have been brought in to fill staffing gaps at Countdown supermarkets and within its supply chain, New Zealand workers alongside them should immediately receive pay parity and be remunerated at the significantly ... More >>
