Fisher & Paykel Healthcare CEO Lewis Gradon has a plan to double revenue every five years. He explains how it’ll do it while keeping margins at 65 percent.
Union members at Fisher & Paykel Healthcare have taken industrial action today, citing three major concerns with the manufacturer over pay and overtime.
The company, one of New Zealand’s biggest, said it was disappointed the industrial action was happening.
The E tū union said workers in Auckland voted to starttaking industrial action - but any strike will have to wait at least two weeks.
E tū industrial organiser Mohammed Faiaz said workers at the big East Tāmaki plant had been seeking assurances about overtime for some hours worked on weekends.
He said company proposals so far had been unpalatable to members, who received double time after working three hours on Sundays and time-and-a-half on Saturdays.
He said some disagreements had also emerged over whether staff should be paid overtime if starting earlier or finishing later than their normal full shift.
“The third thing is employment of part-time employees,” Faiaz said.
He said Fisher & Paykel Healthcare essentially wanted “no conditions” for hiring part-timers, even for as little as an hour a week.
“It’s a real shame that one of New Zealand’s greatest companies is behaving like this,” E tū delegate and engineer Chris Burton said.
“They have got a long history of doing the right thing, and over the years I have been able to do well myself, but that’s not a luxury many of my colleagues are afforded.”
A Fisher & Paykel Healthcare spokesman said the company was still working on a deal.
“We have had strong relationships with our unions over more than 20 years and are disappointed that we have not yet been able to reach an agreement.
“We are committed to developing an agreement that is fair, sustainable and flexible for Fisher & Paykel Healthcare and our employees, and we are hopeful we can come to a resolution quickly.”
Last month, BusinessDesk reported on claims of bullying at the company, where a barrister was brought in as recently as 2021 to assess the allegations.
The company earlier this year was reported to be 34 per cent New Zealand-owned, 32 per Australian, 15 per cent American, and 15 per cent British, with other overseas entities owning the rest.
John Weekes is online business editor. He has covered courts, politics, crime and consumer affairs. He rejoined the Herald in 2020, previously working at Stuff and News Regional, Australia.
