By PAUL YANDALL
The lack of free tea and coffee has Hamilton council workers boiling.
Around 90 staff from the city council's water and sewerage, parks and gardens and nursery and cemetery departments are preparing to strike for want of what they consider a workplace staple.
Wage talks broke down last week when a demand for free tea and coffee was met by a council claim that it would cost $10,000 a year.
"It's not much to ask for, but it seems to be symbolic of what's at stake here," said Amalgamated Workers Union organiser Bob Gilbert.
"It's just bizarre. There seem to be some workers who are allowed tea and coffee and others, on the same pay, at the same workplace, who are not.
"Of course management and salaried workers get it free."
One council parks and gardens worker, who did not want to be identified for fear of reprisal, said the dispute had been brewing for some time.
"Workers lost a lot of conditions, and a lot of money, in the [contract] settlement in 1997. Getting free tea and coffee is just getting something back for the workers."
Hamilton City's general manager (corporate), Mike Garrett, said the council had approved a 2 per cent pay increase, but it drew the line at free tea and coffee.
"We've made what we believe is a very fair offer. Tea and coffee will cost us $10,000 a year and we're not in a position to supply it free."
He said the council, which employed 600 fulltime workers, had bought out the free tea and coffee provision in the workers' collective contract in 1998 by offering an extra 5c an hour.
Mayor Russ Rimmington said he was disappointed that both sides had backed themselves into a corner over the issue.
"It's just a storm in a teacup - all that was needed was a little more goodwill on both sides."
New Zealand Employers Federation spokeswoman Kathryn Asare said there was no legal requirement for employers to provide free tea or coffee, unless it was written into a contract.
"There's no such thing as a free lunch, and there's no such thing as a free tea or coffee."
She said the original "tea and coffee" provision, which included milk and sugar, stemmed from the old national award contracts. These were discarded when the Employment Contracts Act came into force in 1991, but many firms still provided the items out of habit.
Auckland City Council spokeswoman Susan Wilson said free tea and coffee were available to all 1500 council employees during their working day.
Workers fight for right to a free cuppa
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