Lock-Out by CMP ANZCO continues



The Sign says it all



Since October 19^th 2011 over a hundred workers have been locked out of their place of employment, a meat production plant near Marton owned by ANZCO Foods. They have stood in the rain, wind and sun in an attempt to inform the public of their plight. Three months is a long time with no wages coming in, just imagine if it was you, could you last three months?

The company request is simple, work under our conditions or don’t work at all…and their new conditions mean at least a 20% wage reduction plus the loss of other conditions…Oh the company will negotiate, so long as the workers accept their new conditions. Is that negotiations? Or is that bullying?

There are some in our community who would suggest that the workers should just accept their lot and do what they are told, they also suggest that they should be grateful for having a job at all. Every working person in New Zealand should instead of blaming the victims as is often their fashion, look with care as the bases for the companies desire to cut wages.

While its workers are locked-out the company spends thousands on attempting to justify its 18^th century approach to employment relations with newspaper ads and public relations hog-wash. At the same time they eat up large at a fancy restaurant and continue to make ample profit for their share holders. They are in some respects legalised shoplifters for they are stealing the labour of their workers.

We are told daily of the success of our farming industry, the government heaps praise on praise on its farming friends but one is naturally lead to believe that their wealth is built on the backs of those who do the real work.



Standing Tall for justice for all workers



The workers of ANZCO Foods are standing up for all workers by saying enough is enough they are being assisted by some of the more progressive trade unions and by others in our local communities who understand that lowering wages lowers the money being spent in our communities.

We should be ashamed of ANZCO Foods and the behaviour of their owners, who now plan to bring in cheap labour from the Islands, its almost as if the days of the Chinese coolies is back with us…this is a sad day for New Zealand, we once cared about people, we once cared about jobs and a decent wage, a livable wage for all our people. Now we pay the bills for mismanaged outfits like South Canterbury Finance [105 billion] AMI [120 Billion] Media Works and of course ANZCO Food whom the workers are bailing out in real terms. If this is the market run economy in action, the quicker the Occupy Movement takes an effect the better for all of us.