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all SkyCity Hotels & Casinos news
SKYCITY $100,000 SETTLEMENT
Fri 21 Oct 11
After a two long years a union settlement was finally reached with SkyCity casino which should be around $100,000. This money will be shared out amongst any workers who have worked at the SkyCity convention centre after September 2009.
Unite Director Mike Treen took a group case up after he discovered convention staff were wrongly designated as “casuals” receiving no extra payment for overtime hours nor any lieu days for working public holidays. Longer serving staff were paid lower rates than they should have been.
Mike successfully argued that as these workers were regularly rostered to work each week they were actually permanent part-time staff and should receive these payments.
2011 Unite fees proposal - SkyCity
Thu 24 Mar 11
1st April UPDATE: 
Voting has now closed. The Executive proposal was endorsed by 70.8% of those who cast a vote. The proposed fee changes will be implemented during April.
ORIGINAL POST
2011 Unite fees proposal - SkyCity
Thu 24 Mar 11
We’d like your support to increase membership fees for the union by between nothing and 50 cents a week for most for SEA-Unite members at SkyCity.
At the moment SEA-Unite members pay 1% of their weekly income with a minimum of $2 and maximum of $5.
We have avoided raising fees for nearly three years but we can no longer put it off. We know you struggle to pay your bills like all of us. However we really need your support to keep doing the job that we have to do for our members.
Last years AGM in November discussed fee increases and asked the new Executive to come up with a fee increase recommendation that would balance our books and then put it to a vote of all members.
Here are the three challenges we’ve had that made us come to you:
2011 Unite fees proposal - SkyCity
Thu 24 Mar 11
We’d like your support to increase membership fees for the union by between nothing and 50 cents a week for most for SEA-Unite members at SkyCity.
At the moment SEA-Unite members pay 1% of their weekly income with a minimum of $2 and maximum of $5.
We have avoided raising fees for nearly three years but we can no longer put it off. We know you struggle to pay your bills like all of us. However we really need your support to keep doing the job that we have to do for our members.
Last years AGM in November discussed fee increases and asked the new Executive to come up with a fee increase recommendation that would balance our books and then put it to a vote of all members.
Here are the three challenges we’ve had that made us come to you:
Unions reach settlement at SkyCity
Mon 21 Mar 11
After a bitter dispute over the past three months involving both strikes and lockouts the unions have reached an agreement with SkyCity for a new and improved Collective Agreement.
The agreement includes a number of advances over the initial offer from the company.
These include:
- - An increase in redundancy compensation from 12 to 18 weeks
- Including significant roster changes as grounds for redundancy
- A $150 annual unpleasant duties allowance for cleaning staff
- Freezing of car park and staff cafeteria prices for the duration of the agreement
- A $150 incentive payment for union members only for ratifying the contract
- An increase in the annual footwear allowance from $60 to $75 for kitchen staff
SkyCity Casino picket videos 7th March 2011
Wed 9 Mar 11
Video from the SkyCity picket line in response to the emoployer's lockout 5, 6 and 7 March 2011
Skycity Lockout Part One
UTU Picket moves from staff entrance to front of SkyCity
Workers locked out at SkyCity casino in wage dispute
Mon 7 Mar 11
UPDATE 2
Unions reach settlement at SkyCity
UPDATE 1
A very loud and vocal picket was organised on Monday 7th March (videos here) and negotiations resumed later in the day and are continuing this week with the lockout notices withdrawn and strike action postponed.
Strike at Auckland Casino on Chinese New Year to protest discrimination
Mon 31 Jan 11
Update: Unite claims victory with empty casino tables
3rd February 2011
Skycity casino unions are claiming victory over the company in their strike over their collective agreement and allegations that the company discriminates against Chinese staff by denying them leave during an extended Chinese new year.
Unite Union National Director Mike Treen said their aim was to close as much of the casino as possible and that was achieved with the company only able to open a tiny fraction of the gaming tables by using inexperienced managers.
Unite to Challenge Trespass Order
Sun 23 Jan 11
Unite Union national Director Mike Treen is to challenge a Trespass order taken against him and Joe Carolan another Unite official by SkyCity last week by trying to enter the casino at 2pm on Friday.
“The company is acting illegally by trying to use a trespass order to bar my access from most the Casino property and the members I represent,” said Mr Treen
“They are well aware that their powers to Trespass cannot reduce a union officials access rights contained in the Employment Relations Act. If they consider my access to be unreasonable they have the right to take me to court and have me penalized. However, by trying to use the Trespass Act they are seeking to avoid their responsibility to prove I have done anything wrong in exercising my access rights under law.
Union fireworks at SkyCity on New Year’s Day
Thu 30 Dec 10
SkyCity Casino in Auckland will be the scene of union organised action on January 1 starting immediately after the traditional fireworks display.
Unite and the Service and Food Workers Union are organizing a series of joint stop work meetings starting at 12.30am on New Year’s day. The meetings will be voting on a resolution from the union negotiating team rejecting the company’s offer in the Collective Agreement negotiations and empowering the unions to organize continuing industrial action until a suitable offer is received.
