Labour-Alliance Industrial Relations Anti-Work Policies

Labour and Alliance policies to repeal the Employment Contracts Act and replace it with greater regulation are a recipe for lower growth and higher unemployment, Enterprise and Commerce Minister Max Bradford said today.

"The arithmetic is plain" said Mr Bradford, supporting comments made over the weekend to Wellington business leaders by NZ Employers' Federation chief executive Steve Marshall

"Greater regulation of the bargaining process means firms and employees will be less able to strike deals suited to their specific needs. This will result in higher costs, lower productivity and, ultimately, less employment than otherwise would have been the case.

"We can also expect to see a higher incidence of strikes under Labour, particularly as unions seek to bind employers and employees into multi-employer contracts they may want no part of.

"Again, the costs of such actions will be borne in lost production, higher costs, and lower growth and employment.

"The whole mix promises nothing more than greater bureaucracy and higher compliance costs that do nothing to help firms and their employees prosper," Mr Bradford said.

"The increased regulation and union-domination that results will also do nothing for the confidence of businesses, nor their willingness to invest in additional capital or staff.

"The only beneficiaries of these policies are those who helped write them - the unions," Mr Bradford said.