McDonald’s Newsletter Winter 2022 Resolving issues before they become problems Break Entitlements Fair Pay Agreements SkyCity Hamilton strikes Disciplinary meetings & your rights Fast Food Workers Lead with COVID safety Solutions Living Wage increased Unite Member gets backpay for coworkers Advice for Managers when understaffed WHY JOINING THE UNION MAKES A DIFFERENCE Just a reminder of what the union members have achieved over the last fifteen years through collective bargaining: 3 Securing Guaranteed Hours with the ability to increase your weekly minimum. Only a few years ago all McDonalds workers were on “zero hour” contracts. 3 Getting all McDonalds workers paid more than the minimum wage and a way for new crew to get a furter 55 cent per hour increase. 3 Leading campaigns to increase the minimum wage from $9 to $21.20 per hour for everyone in New Zealand. 3 Extending eligibility period for free meals. 3 Getting rid of youth rates in 2006 and stopping the company re- introducing them in 2013. 3 Increasing paid breaks from 10 to 15 minutes and in 15-30-15 order. 3 Getting a clear system for breaks in to the agreement so that the company can’t take them away when the government changed to law to reduce the requirement to provide breaks. 3 Getting a special bonus payment of up to $100 for union members only. 3 Stopping the company from being able to fire you for no reason within 90 days of starting your job. 3 Higher Duties Allowance, Transport Allowance and Domestic Violence Leave. 3 Increasing the rates for Shift Supervisors by $1.50 per hour and winning a Higher Duties Allowance. MINIMUM MINIMUM WAGE WAGE LIVING LIVING website: unite.org.nz email: support@unite.org.nz phone: 0800 2 UNITE (0800 286 483) postal: PO Box 96233, Balmoral, Auckland 1342 We want to inform you of best practice and legal rights around Covid-19 infection spread. If you have tested positive for Covid or have symptoms 1) Firstly - get tested. If you do not get tested you will not be able to access paid leave for your time off work. 2) If you have tested positive you have to stay home for seven days from when your symptoms started or from the date of your positive test (that will be day zero for the seven day count). You do not need to get tested again - you can return to work as long as you have no Covid symptoms ( continue to self isolate if you have symptoms). 3) If you had a PCR test (nose or throat swab) or RAT (Rapid Antigen Test) at a testing centre then you should receive a text message about your result. Save this message! 4) If you used a RAT at home you may have to upload the result yourself at mycovidrecord.health.nz (the same website your vaccination record is recorded on). The text message or screenshot from mycovidrecord.health.nz is all you require to provide proof to your employer - so be sure to save them on your phone or computer. 5) Your employer can access the Covid Leave Support Scheme for your absence and you should not be required to use sick leave or annual leave. A weeks payment is available for 4 to 10 days of required isolation and a second weeks payment is available for 11 days or more. Please contact us if you are asked to use your own leave or if they refuse to credit back leave used after they receive a payment for your absence. If someone in your household has tested positive for Covid 6) If you live in the same household as an infected person you are a “household contact” and must stay in isolation for seven days from when the infected person first had symptoms or had their positive test. 7) You will need to tell your employer you are in isolation and will need to provide proof of your status as a household contact. Make sure the infected person lists you as a contact when they upload their result. Your employer can access a payment for your absence (see 5. above) and you should not be required to use sick leave or annual leave. Please contact us if you are asked to do so. 8) As a “household contact” you will have the right to get a free test. This can be either a PCR or RAT test depending on where you live. contact us: 9) You can return to work if you have a day 7 clear result and no symptoms, even if others in your household have caught Covid later than the initial case If someone at your work has tested positive 10) Only Covid positive individuals and their “household contacts” are required to self-isolate. However you may still be a “close contact” and, if your employer is aware that another employee has caught Covid and may have been infectious while at work with you, they should let you know as soon as possible. For privacy reasons they may not be able to tell you who has caught Covid - but just whether you are a “close” or “casual” contact. 11) You are not required to self-isolate and are not eligible for special paid leave. You should, however, keep a very close eye out for symptoms and self-isolate and get tested immediately if you start to show or feel any symptoms. 12) If you are think someone was working with you while they were infectious with Covid, remind your manager that they must let close contacts know. If they refuse to follow this process let us know. Other important information 13) It is illegal for your employer to force you to work when you are sick, Covid positive or when you have been told to self isolate as a “Household Contact”. Save any messages, emails or texts that show this happening and contact Unite immediately. If they talk to you about it in person or by phone, use the magic words “Can you put that in writing please”. 14) If your employer claims your symptoms are not genuine then it is the same as any other illness. They can ask for a medical certificate (it will probably be by phone with a doctor or nurse) and t hey must pay all reasonable costs for getting the certificate if your absence is less than three days (remind them of this and ask for their request for a medical in writing - they may change their mind!). Even if it turns out you don’t have Covid, self-isolating when you have some symptoms is the right thing to do. 14) If you need help while you or your family are self-isolating ask for help. Contact us at Unite if you are not getting the help you need. 15) If anyone you know has Covid at home and is getting very sick, especially if they are having difficulty breathing, call 111 and ask for an ambulance - do not wait. GETTING PAID WHILE SELF-ISOLATING McDonald’s Workers Feedback on Company COVID response Sent to McDonald’s Human Resources on April 1st 2022 Given the lower support for customer mandates our expectation is for PPE to be strongly maintained in customer facing roles, including spit-guards etc while vaccination pass checking of customers drops off. Of course, with caution being advised around the likelihood of another wave of sickness spreading through the workplace & communities we expect that these positions could well change with the times. McDonald’s Worker’s Council mcdonaldsworkerscouncil@unite.org.nz We are very happy to see that the company will be maintaining measures that Unite delegates first suggested in early 2020 during the first lockdown. The shelves outside drivethrough pick up windows. The use of car windows as barriers. Tap n Go EFTPOS machines installed by payment windows on drivethrough. We would like to see these Tap n Go devices installed on all drivethroughs. Are there plans to do this currently? We strongly believe that McDonalds and Franchisees should include Mandates in risk assessments. We are disappointed to hear that this is currently not the case and will be carrying out further consultation with the membership on this issue. We agree that the continuation of glove use is a sensible measure. We would like to see gloves being accessible at every station as they are not currently always readily available, in all sizes. We would like to see Unite Union included in the contact list as the union plays a significant part in the development and implementation of these processes and our collective response to the pandemic. We surveyed our membership over the weekend and now have further feedback on masks and mandates. On masks, we are in agreement that mask use continues to be mandatory until restaurants are in Green. On mandates: given that nearly 2/3rds of workers support employee mandates, it is our expectation that McDonald’s maintains their mandates until restaurants are in the Green. SkyCity Gets Unionised After Strikes in The Tron SEA Unite successfully won its first collective contract at Hamilton SkyCity after an energetic industrial campaign led by its Hospo workers, writes SEA Convenor Joe Carolan. Whilst our goals of pay parity and a living wage remain to be achieved in our next round of campaigning in June, the deal offered by management to us after five strikes was ratified by a 100% vote from workers, achieving recognition of SEA Unite as the majority union on site, winning an on average 6% increase, with union members enjoying this increase a full six weeks before it is passed on to workers yet to join us on site. Workers found their voice and enjoyed taking action on the busy Saturday night shifts, with walkouts so effective that HR was forced to staff the bar and give up their weekends. When departments flex their muscle like this, it shows to management that it is workers who are essential and that no profits are generated without those who do the mahi on site. The lesson for other departments whose pay has fallen in recent years is to join the union and spread the action next time. There was massive support from other workers in Hamilton for the SkyCity workers picket, and many other hospo workers in the city are talking about how they can replicate this victory up and down Victoria Street in the campaign for a Hospo Fair Pay Agreement later this year. A special thanks to Auckland workers and activists who came down on the socialist solidarity bus every weekend, and to the activist groups who contributed to the workers strike fund, including the generous $500 dontation from the Hamilton Socialist Society. “I’m so proud of our team standing in solidarity and fighting for our rights! It was an exhilarating and empowering feeling. Hopefully we encouraged others to do the same. We are trying our best to make a positive change in the world and I love that!”- Olivia “It’s been super cool being able to stand up and fight for fair pay- We have an amazing team on our side who will continue to do what’s right for hospo workers”- Lacey Face to Face: Resolving issues before they become problems Henry J. Stephenson McDonald’s Johnsonville As union delegates, we often act as the points of first contact when issues arise in our workplace. In the following article I will explore how we can tackle these issues while they’re manageable, before they become larger problems, and how we can do so with confidence. Let’s lay out a hypothetical situation many of us are familiar with, and then step through a process of resolution to demonstrate how we can prevent an issue from becoming a significant problem. Hypothetical Situation It’s summer and your restaurant is boiling hot, making it an uncomfortable and potentially dangerous situation for the staff during the day. It is clear from observation that the air conditioning is not working effectively, your co-workers are complaining, and the hottest part of the year is only just beginning. How can we resolve this issue before it becomes a health & safety problem? 1 | Think Preemptively. If you can see an issue arising in the future, deal with it as quickly as possible. It is easier to get an AC unit repaired after the first hot streak in October than it is in the middle of January, so address your issues early and you’ll have the best chance of having them resolved quickly. 2 | Back Yourself. Get in touch with your organiser and let them know what’s going on – even if its minor, keeping them in the loop will help prevent escalation in the future and then can help you with your next steps. Additionally, discuss the issue with your co-workers and retain any important information in writing. In our example, having a photo of a high temperature in the kitchen or the testimony of co-workers who have felt dizzy will only help your cause by establishing the real impact of the issue. 3 | Take it to the Right Person, at the Right Time Consider who can resolve the issue, and what the best way to approach them is. In our example, complaining to a shift-manager in the middle of a dinner rush is unlikely to get the AC fixed, but asking your restaurant manager for a five-minute meeting off the floor is much more likely to see a resolution. 4 | Work Face-to-Face In bringing an issue forward, consider how you communicate. Emails and texts are handy as they set a record, but they’re also easy to ignore. When you bring an issue forward face-to-face it’s hard to brush aside or downplay but send a follow-up text or email so you can make sure you have agreements or proposed resolutions in writing. 5 | Have Confidence Speak with authority and confidence in your position. Remember that as a delegate you speak for the interests of your co-workers, so use phrases like “members of the staff have raised this as an issue”, rather than “I feel like...” or “Jim in the kitchen told me...”. If bringing an issue forward by yourself is challenging, enlist other union delegates or union members to back you up, but avoid appearing too confrontational. 6 | Be constructive It’s not your job to fix the issue but bringing forward solutions or suggestions can help bring about quicker resolutions. Remember that as delegates we want to promote the interests of our co-workers, and sometimes a diplomatic approach is the best way of achieving that. 7 | Finally, Follow-Up Make sure you always follow- up with any interested parties, including your co-workers and organiser. If a timeframe or resolutions are set to solve the issue, monitor their progress. And if the process fails, report back to your organiser about the next steps forward. Gary Cranston Lead organiser for McDonald’s What is a disciplinary investigation? Disciplinary investigations happen when a conduct or performance issue is of concern to a manager or when a manager receives a complaint. Anyone could find themselves in a situation where a manager wants to talk to them about an issue or a complaint against them. When that person is a union member, they can expect that the union will provide them with support and representation. Not all issues should be dealt with through a disciplinary investigation. Managers should discuss any relevant issues with workers and seek to provide support and development opportunities to address any areas of concern. You may seek to have a problem-solving meeting instead of a disciplinary investigation, if you think the issue warrants a less formal process. Your Rights • You have a right to know of any complaint against you before you attend any meeting. • You have a right to know the substance of the complaint and who the complainant is. • You have the right to know of any ‘evidence’ or witnesses against you. • You have the right to question, challenge or to seek elaboration about the complaint and/or evidence. • You have the right to be accompanied and/or to representation. • You have the right to remain silent – avoid explaining any actions until you have someone representing you. Later this year the government will be introducing Fair Pay Agreements (FPA’s) into law. This will be a generational shift for workers and unions. Don’t let the name fool you, FPA’s will be about more than just pay including terms and conditions like hours of work, training, overtime and health & safety. What is so different about FPA’s is they will allow a union to negotiate an agreement for a whole sector, instead of just one (or a few) companies. This means that Unite could negotiate for Hospitality as a whole. Thousands and thousands of workers coming together to improve pay and conditions across a whole industry - and this is our plan for this year. Just as workers are stronger at their worksite when they are in a union, workers will be stronger still when they are united across hospitality. FPA’s still allow workers to negotiate as individuals and in a union with a company. They will raise the floor of pay and conditions, lifting all workers together and the government has been clear about that - FPA’s will improve worker’s lives. Read more at www.makeworkfair.nz John Crocker National Secretary Unite Union F AIR P A Y AGREEMENTS The shift manager should seek approval from their supervisor (McOpco) or Franchisee (franchise restaurant) for approval to close the restaurant or part of the restaurant before doing so. This process is in place to ensure that if assistance is needed on a particular shift then the supervisor or franchisee is able to do so, for example by providing additional resources if that is possible. If it is a matter of health and safety or wellbeing the shift manager is able to make the appropriate call based on the information at the time then inform either the supervisor or franchisee at the first available chance following. Advice for Managers when your shift is understaffed UNITE UNION | 0800286483 | 6a Western Springs Rd. Morningside www.unite.org.nz | support@unite.org.nz | www.unite.org.nz/join The New Zealand Living Wage hourly rate for 2022/23 is $23.65. It was announced on April 1 and will come into effect on 1 September 2022. The Living Wage concept is very simple, yet such a powerful alternative – it’s 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. We call upon the Government, employers and society as a whole to strive for a living wage for all households as a necessary and important step in the reduction of poverty in New Zealand. This story was originally published by Living Wage Movement Aotearoa at www.livingwage.org.nz Living Wage Increased to $23.65 Unite Member gets backpay for coworkers The restaurant recently started a $1 extra per hour incentive payment to workers who work the hours of 10:30pm and 4:30am as it is hard to fill these shifts. On payday I noticed these hours were not listed or identified on the payslip so I couldn’t tell if these had been paid. After checking the payslip I emailed the store’s operations manager. The operations manager told me it was included in the gross timecard payment, I double checked this and found this was not correct. I contacted other staff and found out they had not been paid either and had been told the same thing. After exchanging a number of emails, the operations manager agreed that it had not been paid and all staff would be back paid in the next pay round. - Written by a Crew Member Fast Food Workers Lead with COVID safety Solutions Gary Cranston Fast Food Lead Organiser, Auckland and Northland In April 2020 Unite Union’s fast food delegates got together on Zoom to create a worker’s response to COVID health and safey concerns, knowing that they would be back to work under unique circumstances as the government allowed fast food companies to remain operating. The result was a list of workers demands and solutions, which was sent to the fast food companies. Initially most of these demands were rejcted or just ignored and not implemented. But as time moved on it seemed to become clear to the companies that the worker’s demands were in fact sensible solutions. The top three demands on the list were eventually adopted by McDonald’s and other fast food companies. Shelves appeared outside drivethrough present booths. Customers and drivethrough operators were expected to use windows as protecive barriers. And EFTPOS terminals were installed outside drivethrough payment booths. Some of these solutions proved so effecive and useful that they are being kept in place regardless of the COVID situation. Just goes to show that organised workers themselves are best placed to take the lead when it comes to health and safety planning. Ì Drive Thru workers to maintain 2m distance from customers. Ì A table/shelf for placing orders on. Ì Drive Thru window should be used as a barrier between customers and workers. Ì No delivering orders to customers parked in cars. Ì No cash payments. Ì Contact tracing for all customers. Ì Employees should be allowed to wear their own jackets. Ì Drive Thru headsets should be effectively sanitised between users. Ì Fixed shifts for all workers to reduce numbers of staff working together. Ì EFTPOS machines sanitised after each transaction and installed outside the Drive Thru booth to eliminate all contact and maintain 2m distancing. Ì Level 3 procedures clearly communicated to customers at drive through speaker / order point. Ì Zero tolerance of aggressive customers - immediate trespassing. Ì All timers and ‘speed of service’ measures to be stopped during level 3 so employees are not under pressure. Ì Reduced hours of service to enable sufficient cleaning. Ì Employees with health vulnerabilities, or those living with people that have vulnerabilities, to be allowed to stay home with full subsidy wage. WWW.UNITE.ORG.NZ/JOIN 0 8 0 0 2 U N I T E www.unite.org.nz | support@unite.org.nz Unite Union Fast Food Worker’s Demands for COVID-19 Safety Created by over 60 fast food union delegates across Aotearoa | 22 April 2020 How Fast Food C(r)apitalism works BUILD YOUR UNION As individual workers we have limited strength, but together we are strong. By negotiating together, we are able to get better, fairer pay for our hard work. Step 1 Register to be a recruiter at www.unite.org.nz/recruiter Step 2 Encourage your workmates to join online at www.unite.org.nz/join And tell them to put your name in the box on the online form. Step 3 You get for each new member who identifies you as their recruiter. 0800286483|6a Western Springs Road M orningside Auckland | www.unite.org.nz | support@unite.org.nz www.unite.org.nz/join Hot Tip: You can share the joining link with your friends at work through text messages, social media and group chats. Where we have more members we have more control over our day to day working conditions. So while it is important that you become a member, we must make sure our workmates are encouraged to sign up too. Break Entitlements at McDonald’s As an Employee you are entitled to receive breaks, for a couple of reasons being to promote good morale and productivity in your workplace and to prevent fatigue which could cause harm to yourself or others. Breaks need to match the type of work you do, for example a McDonald’s worker may need to sit down and rehydrate after working in the boiling hot kitchen for a couple of hours. Research has shown that receiving adequate breaks makes a noticeable difference to an employee’s physical and mental well-being while at work. In situations where fatigue can lead to harm (such as moving heavy items i.e., during a delivery at McDonalds or cooking food), employers have obligations to take all practicable steps to ensure that fatigue is not likely to cause harm. Employers are not responsible for factors outside of work that led to fatigue or impact on an employee’s ability to cope, but they do have to have systems that identify and deal with these factors when they may affect workplace safety. The employer must provide breaks in accordance with the breaks schedule in your Collective Agreement. Any Questions? Contact Unite Union 0800 286 483 Alister Bray Co-president of the McDonald’s Workers Council Join Unite Be part of your union - We are all stronger together If you have an issue at work, union members can get support from the union. Unite members can call the Union for advice on what their rights are under the law and under their contract. Where there is a dispute, the union can provide representation for meetings with management. In extreme cases, the Union can help you with legal advice and help lodge a personal grievance with your employer. Union members often receive backpay when we sign off on new collective contracts, and sometimes we win financial settlements that only apply to union members. In some places, Unite members also have access to Union run medical clinics where members can receive a free or discounted doctors visit. Unite members are also covered by a funeral insurance scheme, which can be important in a difficult time. Each Union contract also includes Union only benefits. Join Online www.unite.org.nz/join 0800286483 www.unite.org.nz The Union is much more important than individual problems. Unite wants to improve pay and conditions for everyone. By negotiating a collective agreement with companies, we are able to get better contracts. Individually, we have limited strength, but together we are strong. Where we have more members, we are able to win better contracts. Its important that not only you become a member, but make sure your workmates are signed up too! The Aotearoa McDonald’s Workers Council is a democratic council, made up of twelve Unite Union delegates from McDonald’s stores across the country. The council meets together every three weeks to discuss matters pertaining to McDonald’s workers, with the goal of creating a fair and safe working environment for all. In these times of pandemic and economic hardship, the council is committed to elevating the voices of workers and ensuring that they are heard by McDonald’s New Zealand. As a mouthpiece for McDonald’s workers, the council wants to hear from you. Communicate with us directly and confidentially at mcdonaldsworkerscouncil@unite.org.nz, or join the conversation at “McDonalds Unite Delegates Aotearoa” on Facebook. Contact: mcdonaldsworkerscouncil@unite.org.nz Aotearoa McDonald’s Workers Council Who Are We? 0 8 0 0 2 8 6 4 8 3 6a Western Springs Rd. Sandringham Auckland 1021 unite.org.nz | support@unite.org.nz