Wendy's staff plan protest outside Auckland store after Employment Court injunction

The fast food joint got an injunction to stop picketers trespassing on company land. Photo / File

Wendy's workers will be gathering outside on the company's Auckland stores this evening to protest issues around annual leave, lieu days, and a controversial training programme.

This despite the fast food joint getting an injunction to stop picketers trespassing on company land.

Unite national director Mike Treen said negotiations with the fast food company had broken down after a year when Wendy's introduced a condition that employees must pass a new training programme.

Pay increases above the minimum wage were conditional on passing the programme, he said.

"The company demanded that we accept a new training programme for staff that's never been tried before . . . it's 96 pages long, asking managers to make 600 or more observations on staff.

"This is just nuts from our point of view."

Staff had been picketing over the issue, but Wendy's yesterday got an injunction from the Employment Court against Unite Union to stop picketers trespassing on company land.

Treen said the injunction was "fine" but the company had then sent out maps to the union highlighting areas they were not allowed to picket, and those included common areas such as carparks and accessways.

The union did not agree with being told they could not protest in these areas, but will respect the injunction until the matter goes back to court.

Tonight they are gathering outside the Dominion Rd store between 5-7pm to protest.

"It's the main store people will visit or pass on the way to the All Blacks game tonight," Treen said.

"It is important for all supporters of workers in low-paid industries like fast food to respect these ongoing strikes and pickets by Wendy's workers."

If the training programme condition was dropped from negotiations, Treen said it was likely they could settle, but they also wanted clarity about annual leave, lieu days, and pay for sole-charge supervisors.