Yesterday afternoon (Monday) the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) set down a timetable for FENZ’s urgent application for facilitation of bargaining. The ERA member has directed parties to try and resolve the issue of facilitation in mediation to be held before 28 October 2025. The mediation is solely about FENZ’s application for facilitation and if the parties resolve the matter at mediation FENZ’s application for facilitation will be withdrawn.
Should the issue not be resolved at mediation, FENZ’s application for facilitation will be heard at an ERA investigation meeting on the 14th November 2025.
That means if FENZ does not withdraw its application, the parties will not know whether facilitation is to be directed before the 14th November 2025. If the ERA does not order facilitation, FENZ will have caused at least a 5-week delay when they could have fronted last week to bargaining and provided their revised position. If facilitation is ordered, a different ERA member is assigned and timetabling for facilitation with that Authority Member will follow.
We are of the view that FENZ’s application for facilitation is a delay tactic as the 17th October 2025 strike notice might have been lifted if they attended bargaining last week and tabled a revised offer.
The NZPFU is opposing facilitation. The parties had agreed to four more days in bargaining and FENZ has every opportunity to present a revised position or offer. The only offer FENZ has made was dated June 13 and was rejected by 99% of members who attended ballot meetings in July. FENZ has had months to provide a revised offer.
FENZ has refused to attend bargaining last week (9th and 10th October), or provide a revised offer, because on 1 October the NZPFU issued a strike notice for a full 1-hour stoppage on the 17th October. The NZPFU had written to FENZ stating that the strike notice demonstrated that NZPFU members were fed up and hoped the notice would motivate FENZ to come to the table with a fair and reasonable offer. We have repeatedly stated that the Union would carefully consider any offer presented at bargaining and consider withdrawing the strike notice if sufficient progress was being made. In 2022, the NZPFU demonstrated a willingness to withdraw notices of full stoppages when sufficient progress in discussions and bargaining was being made. Despite numerous strike notices being issued from August – December 2022, only two one-hour strikes occurred during those negotiations.
As FENZ has refused to meet for bargaining there is no basis to withdraw the strike notice - the one-hour full strike/stoppage from 12 noon on Friday 17th October 2025 will be going ahead.
In unity,
Wattie Watson
National Secretary
