spc sack 73 workers, page-10

a great article by grace collier in the australian - she does not like the idea of the government giving jobs to greg combet, or natasha scott depoya (or whatever)

greg combet is advising the government in relation to spc
anyway - part of the article)-



"The narrative that Combet will build around SPC Ardmona is likely to be this.

The workers are modestly paid, but our cost base in this country is far more expensive than New Zealand's, so we must give the company financial support to keep it here.

Comparisons between SPC and Heinz Watties in New Zealand will be made. Heinz Watties workers have base hourly rates ranging from $16.69 to $19.69.

From January 1, SPC workers' base hourly rates will range from $24.56 to $31.06.

What Combet won't tell the Prime Minister is that if SPC didn't have an enterprise agreement and just paid the modern award wage it would be paying base hourly rates in the $16.37 to $19.07 range.

This means the workers here could be cheaper than the ones in New Zealand. He won't say that the company voluntarily made its fixed cost base so high it now cannot function, and he won't use his skills to convince workers to go back to the award wage to save their jobs and the fate of the local growers that depend on them.

The entire SPC wages issue has been confused already. A figure of annual salaries about the $50,000 mark was floated and contradicts another figure about the $120,000 mark. Base rates are no indicator of true salaries in union agreements, which are cleverly written to pad salaries with loadings and penalties.

I would put my money on the $120,000 number, but to be sure the government should make the company show it the group certificates of every employee."