Displaying 1 - 24 of 44 results.

Hon Kate Wilkinson has resigned as Labour Minister, effective today, following today’s release of the report from the Royal Commission on the Pike River Coal Mine tragedy.

“The Pike River Mine tragedy of 19 November 2010 happened on my watch as Minister of Labour,” says Ms Wilkinson.

“While reports from the former Department of Labour did not advise me of concerns about their ability to administer the health and safety legislation, 29 men lost their lives in this tragedy.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Cabinet has agreed to further improvements to the Employment Relations Act 2000, including changes to Part 6A that deals with the cleaning, catering, orderly and laundry industries, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson said today.

The objective of Part 6A is to provide continuity of employment for employees in specific industries when a business is restructured or sold.

“A review of Part 6A found that there were significant operational issues around transferring employees’ entitlements and information to the new employer,” Ms Wilkinson says.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has today confirmed the introduction of a new starting-out wage that will help provide young New Zealanders with more opportunities to get into the workforce.

Speaking at the launch of the Government's Skilled and Safe Workplaces Progress Report, Ms Wilkinson said the new starting-out wage was the latest in a series of steps to help get more New Zealanders into jobs in the wake of the Global Financial Crisis.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour

2.05pm, Thursday 4 October 2012

Thank you David and thank you all. It's a great pleasure to be here today.

It's always good to see so many leaders of our major businesses, industries, unions and government officials together in one room focusing on health and safety.

I would like to give a very special welcome to our guest speaker today, Judith Hackitt – Chair of the United Kingdom Health and Safety Executive.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour

Wednesday 3 October 2012

Michael Fowler Centre, Wellington

Introductory remarks

Ladies and Gentlemen, thank you for the opportunity to speak to you today. It's great to be here and I'm pleased to see you all in Wellington for the Safety 2012 World Conference.

A warm welcome especially to all our overseas visitors, I hope you are enjoying some Kiwi hospitality and seeing some of what our country has to offer.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Hon Kate Wilkinson, Minister of Labour
3.05pm, Tuesday 2 October 2012

Thank you all for coming today, it's great to see so many leaders, both from Canterbury and nationally, all in one place to discuss how we can make the rebuild of this city safe, as well as swift and cost-effective.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has today welcomed the arrival of Judith Hackitt, Chair of the United Kingdom Health and Safety Executive.

Ms Hackitt will deliver a series of speeches and presentations with New Zealand government officials, health and safety practitioners and business leaders as part of Safety 2012, the 11th World Conference on Injury Prevention and Safety Promotion.

“Ms Hackitt is a recognised global expert on workplace safety and occupational health,” Ms Wilkinson says.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

ACC Minister Judith Collins and Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson today announced the Government’s plans to introduce a Safety Star Rating system to make the good safety records of businesses more visible.

Ms Collins says the voluntary system, currently being developed by ACC and the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment will encourage injury prevention and more effective workplace health and safety practice.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Judith Collins
  • Labour
  • ACC

Adventure tourism operators will face stronger regulations to help prevent tragedies from drug and alcohol-related accidents, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson announced today.

The proposed changes to the Health and Safety (Adventure Activities) Regulations 2011 and aviation and maritime rules will create an explicit requirement for operators to monitor and manage safety risks associated with drug or alcohol impairment from mid-December 2012.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Adventure tourism operators will face stronger regulations to help prevent tragedies from drug and alcohol-related accidents, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson announced today.

The proposed changes to the Health and Safety (Adventure Activities) Regulations 2011 and aviation and maritime rules will create an explicit requirement for operators to monitor and manage safety risks associated with drug or alcohol impairment from mid-December 2012.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has welcomed the Safer Workplaces consultation document launched by the Independent Taskforce on Workplace Health and Safety today.

“The Pike River tragedy was the catalyst for me to set up the Independent Taskforce earlier this year to undertake the first strategic review of our workplace health and safety system in 20 years. I’m pleased to see the start of public consultation as part of this work,” Ms Wilkinson says.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has today announced the appointment of Tony Forster as Chief Inspector for mines in the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s High Hazards Unit.

Mr Forster will head a team of four specialist inspectors. He will lead the Ministry’s health and safety regulatory work in relation to mines including both underground and opencast.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson today announced the appointment of two new Members of the Employment Relations Authority and the reappointment of two others.

The new members - each appointed to a three-year term - are Kerikeri lawyer Tania Tetitaha, to Auckland and Wellington lawyer Patricia MacKinnon to the Wellington office. These appointments fill vacancies in the Authority.

Two current members, Paul Stapp and Greg Wood have been reappointed to Wellington.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

16 August 2012, Queens Wharf (Dockside restaurant)

Thank you, David for your kind introduction.

It is great to see a wide cross-section of the fishing industry here for what is a very important piece of work.

We are here to officially launch the Fishing Sector Action Plan – and it has a very important purpose – to address the high rate of injury and death in the fishing sector.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson and Associate Transport Minister Simon Bridges have launched a new action plan to bring down the unacceptable number of workplace injuries experienced by the fishing sector.

The Fishing Sector Action Plan identifies concrete actions for reducing this rate of harm, including implementation of a proposed new Maritime Operator Safety System (MOSS) and Qualifications and Operational Limits Framework (QOL).

  • Simon Bridges
  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Transport
  • Labour

A trans-Tasman ministerial meeting focused on workplace health and safety will be hosted in Christchurch later this year, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has announced.

Thenew Select Council on Workplace Relations, which brings together Australian and New Zealand ministers involved in workplace relations and health and safety, met for the first time in Melbourne today.

Minister Wilkinson has invited the Select Council to Christchurch for their next meeting in November.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

The ministerial responsibility and funding for the National Advisory Council on the Employment of Women (NACEW) is being transferred from Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson to Women’s Affairs Minister Jo Goodhew, the two Ministers announced today.

“NACEW is an important advocate for women in the workplace. Since its establishment in 1967, the council has had an instrumental role in influencing changes to legislation and policy to recognise and develop women’s employment in New Zealand,” Ms Wilkinson says.

  • Jo Goodhew
  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Women’s Affairs
  • Labour

New research showing the Government’s 90-day trial period is encouraging business to take a chance on new employees has been welcomed by Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson.

The study, undertaken by the Department of Labour, shows that more employers had used trial periods (60 per cent) and 40 per cent of employers who hired someone on a trial period would not have taken that person on without it.

The majority of employers – 80 per cent – retained their staff once the trial period was over.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Tena koutou, Tena koutou Katoa (Greetings to you all)

Thank you to the Chairperson, Director General, and Regional Directors for your opening remarks.

It is an opportune time to be discussing youth unemployment at this Conference as it is clear that the numbers of our young people out of work has been rising in both developed and developing economies, even where general unemployment rates are stabilising following the global recession.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Tena koutou, Tena koutou katoa (Greetings to you all).

Mr President, fellow delegates. I’m very pleased to be able to address this session, to acknowledge the contribution Director General Juan Somavia has made to the ILO, and to congratulate and welcome our new Director-General, Guy Ryder, who we have elected to lead this organisation over the years to come.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson will take part in discussions, with a focus on youth employment, at the International Labour Conference in Geneva.

Ms Wilkinson will address the meeting of Asia Pacific Labour Ministers on Tuesday, as part of the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) discussion on the global youth employment crisis.

“Youth employment is a growing problem around the world. It is a very complex issue and demands comprehensive responses from Governments and the international community.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson has announced the membership of an independent taskforce that will undertake the first wide-ranging strategic review of the workplace health and safety system in 20 years.

“New Zealand’s workplace death and injury rates are not improving and are poor in comparison to countries like Australia and the United Kingdom,” Ms Wilkinson says.

“The Government is taking action to ensure we get better results and see a 25 per cent reduction in workplace deaths and serious injuries by 2020.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

An increase to parental leave payments will put more money in the pockets of young families, Labour Minister Kate Wilkinson says.

On 1 July the maximum parental leave payment available to eligible employees and the self-employed will increase from $458.82 to $475.16 a week.

The minimum parental leave payment for the self-employed will also increase, from $130.00 to $135.00 a week.

“Any increase in financial support for new parents is always helpful,” Ms Wilkinson says.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour

Sky City Convention Centre, Auckland
31 May 2012

I would like start by congratulating the award winners from last night. The breadth and imagination in their winning programmes was very significant. We can all learn from the entrants – whether winning or not.  

This morning I've been asked to give you a Ministerial perspective of health and safety. It's something I take very seriously and we all must take very seriously.

  • Kate Wilkinson
  • Labour