Two Labour bills pass into law
Photo:
VNP / Phil Smith
A generous 'member's day' in Parliament has seen two Labour Party bills pass with full or part-government support, including a bill that looks to stop employers enforcing gag orders on workers talking about their salaries.
New Zealand First, which opposed the Labour bill, took a swipe at its coalition partner for supporting legislation it said "torches contract law".
NZ First MP Mark Patterson asked a National MP if he'd been "napping" when it was considered by the party.
Every other Wednesday, Parliament debates bills put forward by backbench MPs from any party that are drawn from the members bill ballot.
Camilla Belich's Employment Relations (Employee Remuneration Disclosure) Amendment Bill would make
pay gag clauses unenforceable
, meaning employers could not take legal action if an employee does talk about pay.
This legislation passed with support from opposition parties and National, while ACT and New Zealand First voted against it.
Belich spoke first, indicating she had felt apprehensive because nothing was guaranteed in terms of support from other parties. But she said it was a "good day" when MPs could come together to support legislation even when they had different politics and a different vision for New Zealand.
She referenced a study by the Human Rights Commission into the Pacific Pay Gap which she said had found pay secrecy was "really hampering the progress" of New Zealand workplaces, an idea she then became interested in leading to her members bill.
"We cannot keep taking steps backward when it comes to equality and fairness. These are things that should be bipartisan."
She said the bill implemented a small change, but said it was a small step forward for New Zealand, saying it would make workplaces fairer and more open.
Speaking first on behalf of the National Party, Vanessa Weenink said she rose in "very strong support" of the bill, to a round of applause.
She also acknowledged it was a small change, but called it a "fundamental change".
"It will actually enable all employees to confidently discuss their pay and terms and conditions with anyone that they choose to, without fear that doing so may cause some encumbrance in their employment, that they might have some negative impact or repercussions as a result of doing that."
She said that fear could lead to unease and mistrust, and could perpetuate inequality.
Her National Party colleague Hamish Campbell emphasised the legislation did not force anyone to disclose anything.
ACT MP Parmjeet Parmar.
Photo:
VNP / Phil Smith
ACT opposed the bill, with MP Parmjeet Parmar saying the legislation fell short of what Belich and others hoped it would do. She claimed the supporters believed it would fix pay discrimination and the gender pay gap, but Parmar said it would not "do anything of that sort".
"This bill has no substance in it to make meaningful progress in that regard, and that is why the ACT party is not supporting this bill."
She said any discussions about the gender pay gap and pay discrimination were "undeniably" important, adding "if this bill was doing anything in that regard we would have thrown full support behind this bill".
Parmar said it was going to create problems at workplaces, rather than solve them.
New Zealand First MP MP Mark Patterson.
Photo:
RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
New Zealand First strongly opposed the bill, with MP Mark Patterson calling it an "abomination". He said it "torches contract law" and the party "will not put our name next to it".
Patterson also questioned National's support for the issue.
"We are surprised that National had, but they've obviously gone along with that on this occasion - hopefully this is not a trend in terms of flouting contract law."
He asked whether there were no lawyers left in the National Party, asking James Meager directly if he'd been "napping" when it went through caucus.
Patterson pointed to "unintended consequences" of the bill and people sharing their pay "willy nilly".
He suggested there may be warranted reasons pay differentiation between employees, such as "performance, merit, experience".
"It's not gender, necessarily, hopefully it should never be gender."
Tracey McLellan's
Evidence (Giving Evidence of Family Violence) Amendment Bill
, which would extend the range of possible protections for those giving evidence of sexual assaults or family harm in the Family Court, also passed but with support from all parties.
It would allow for those giving evidence to do so in alternative ways, rather than being required to in the same room as the alleged abuser for example.
Many MPs highlighted the moment of unity, saying it was the best of parliament when it came together to make change for the better.
McLellan spoke first and said the bill was about "safety, it's about dignity, and it's about justice".
"It is about recognising that victims fo family violence should not be retraumatised by the very institution charged with protecting them."
She said too many people, "most often women", had walked into the family court and found it to be a place of fear rather than refuge.
"This bill takes an important step to change that."
Tom Rutherford.
Photo:
RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
Tom Rutherford spoke on behalf of National, echoing McLellan's sentiments. He also spoke about the debate representing the "collegiality of parliament".
"Everybody in this place wants to make New Zealand a better place, sometimes we disagree about how we get there, but sometimes we actually come together for the good of New Zealand."
He said this bill reflected that parties could put political differences aside, recognise an issue and fix it.
McLellan later told RNZ MPs were there to improve the lives of people.
She acknowledged there wasn't always agreement on how that should be done, but "when you can provide the other parties that you're working with a good, sensible bill, it makes it pretty hard for them not to see the light and not to support it".
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