SLGOU and City Council settle on collective contract offer

15 February 2007

Christchurch City Council staff, who are members of the Southern Local Government Officers Union, have voted to accept an offer from the City Council on their collective contract.

Philippa Jones, General Manager Human Resources, says the settlement goes a long way towards addressing the imbalance in the Council’s pay rates. "We want to build a world-class organisation. A proper remuneration structure for staff is critical to this," she says.

The Council’s offer is for a three-year agreement and includes a combination of one-off payments and salary increases over three years of between 2% and 18% and will cost $7.2 million.

Council employees will receive five weeks annual leave after six years service rather than after the current eight years service. Hours of work provisions have been changed to allow for flexibility in setting hours. The settlement is backdated to 1 July 2006 and will expire on 30 June 2009.

"The three-year agreement will give stability and financial certainty for both staff and the Council," Ms Jones says.

Ms Jones says that the settlement is within the Council’s approved budget and will have no impact on the rates paid by residents.

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