Living Wage advocate Lyndy McIntyre says she is thrilled at the Kāpiti Council decision to move towards adopting the policy.
“This is an important step as the motion passed today endorses in principle the adoption of the Living Wage not just for those directly employed by council but also for contractors.
“This is a stake in the ground for Kāpiti who were standing out as lagging behind with neighbouring councils having adopted the Living Wage, including Wellington City, Hutt City and Porirua.
Ms McIntyre, a former Kāpiti councillor, says she would now like to see all election candidates make their intentions clear about adopting this after the election.
Cr Sophie Handford who has been a driving force behind the Living Wage proposal for Kāpiti along with fellow councillor Gwynn Compton says today’s outcome was very welcome.
“Huge mihi to Cr Gwynn Compton for his tenacity in this kōrero, Lyndy McIntyre and the wider Living Wage Aotearoa New Zealand movement for their support and sharing of knowledge and time,” says Cr Handford.
“We’ve instructed the Chief Executive to report back to the new council by 15 December 2022 on the costs and benefits of KCDC adopting the Living Wage and an implementation plan to achieve accreditation as a Living Wage Employer through the 2023 Annual Plan process.”
Deputy Mayor Janet Holborow, says “With the cost of living hitting our communities hard, we need to pull all the levers we can to ensure that we look after our community and can start with our own organisation.”
The Living wage is an internationally acknowledged term for the hourly wage a worker needs to pay for the necessities of life and participate as an active citizen in the community.
It reflects the basic expenses of workers and their families such as food, transportation, housing and childcare, and is calculated independently each year by the New Zealand Family Centre Social Policy Unit.
Ms Holborow says it will be up to the new council to decide how to progress work. “We are not committing the next council to anything except considering a report. But we need to get the wheels turning on this. We’ve left it too long already, and we need to be a fair employer, and provide an example to our community.”
Cr Rob McCann, while supporting the Living Wage for all council staff, was concerned that KCDC act now, not by 2026 as the original motion proposed.
“We have a cost-of-living crisis right now, not in 2026,” says Councillor McCann. “If we want to do more than virtue signalling in an election year, we need to make sure a Living Wage is considered as soon as possible. That means having a plan for implementation for new councillors to consider in the 2023 Annual Plan.
He says Councillors agreed and the amended motion subsequently passed.
“Too often council is seen as slow to move, and the current leadership team did not progress this when Councillor Compton and Handford first brought it to council.
“With the amendment, the new council will be able to consider a report that looks to ensure immediate implementation with council staff, and progressive implementation with contractors.”
