Olympic gold medallist Valerie Vili and founder of The Warehouse Stephen Tindall were today announced as finalists for New Zealander of the Year.

About a quarter of workers at The Warehouse will resume industrial action after talks between the company and a union broke down.

Unionised staff at the Warehouse plan to hand out complaint cards to customers to pressure the company into hiring more staff.

Spending on Australian Christmas workplace events is set to soar, but NZ employers are going the other way.