RSE - STEWARDSHIP AND SUSTAINABILITY George Mason – General Manager Employment Services 2018 Recognised Seasonal Employer (RSE) Conference
RSE – Current State… • Well established and administered • National application • Critical element of horticulture/viticulture business • Rules of the game understood • Supporting infrastructure • Broad authorising mandate • Maturing
… but a range of persistent concerns… • Inherent vulnerability of RSE workers • ‘Compliant’ workforce • Opportunism in treatment • Increasing hours of work • Entitlements not paid Productivity gains not recognised • • Expense/Deduction creep • Poor accommodation standards • Deficiencies in broader pastoral care • Resistance to formal organisation • Maturity ‘patchy’ • Interface with broader labour market objectives
… more specifically… • Accommodation and pastoral care should be coming to self regulation stage, still working with a few on accommodation standards • Increasing weekly accommodation costs in many areas; must be actual, reasonable and necessary, with no margin for the employer • Current ranges from $60 up top $175; the top end LI/INZ have pushed back on and the employer has been requested to find cheaper alternative • Range of facilities with accommodation differs markedly; Sky TV, cleaning, heating provided, etc. • Concern around the increasing deductions - LI position is no deductions permitted for; welcome packs, bed packs, toiletry packs, wood packs, house management fees, etc. • Charging for tools and PPE which are essential to the employees duties (potential HSWA prosecution) • Remuneration may not be recognising productivity gains • Criticism of suppressing terms, conditions, and development of local labour.
… and the regulators are not going away... • RSE scheme remains a focus • “On-hire labour” a priority area for MBIE • Resourcing increasing • Active monitoring of hours of work, remuneration and broader conditions beyond ‘baseline’ • Expectation of compliance – ‘zero tolerance’ • Critical risk in compliance failure – scheme exit • Opportunism will result in investigation
… but it’s not just about compliance • Supporting sector operated assurance schemes • Encouraging greater sector ‘leadership’ and ‘ownership’ • Working with sector capability building initiatives • Seeking to recognise and reward maturity • Gaining full value from RSE for all participants And supporting resources are available…
Employment Agreement Builder • Easy, tailored employment agreements, legally compliant agreements • 500,000 new agreements based on it since April 2016
Tools and resources for small business, e.g. Employee Cost Calculator • Tailored upfront and ongoing costs of a new hire Workplace Policy Builder • Policies tailored to your workplace
Where to now for RSE Scheme? • What is the industry’s ambition for itself and its workforce? • What is the value industry is creating for its customers in meeting their expectations? • What is the ‘licence to operate’ in the broader community? • How is RSE integrated within broader industry workforce ambition, customer value and ‘license to operate’? How does the industry demonstrate maturity in its approach to RSE • as part of that? • How is the inherent vulnerability of RSE workers recognised and protected and opportunistic behaviour eliminated? • What is required for a fully mature and sustainable RSE model? • What does ongoing industry stewardship of RSE look like?
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