This morning, thanks to NZBus's greed, 600 bus drivers willing to do their job as defined in their contract are locked out of their jobs - and as a result 80,000 Aucklanders are locked out of their city. The result isn't chaos - the media loves good hyperbole - but it is inconvenient for many. And Aucklanders should not have to put up with it.
The Auckland Regional Council pays NZBus $150,000 a day in subsidies. They are being paid today, even though they are not delivering the services that are being purchased. And that is simply wrong. As ARC chair points out,
"This is equivalent to a boss's strike. When workers go on strike, they don't get paid and neither should NZ Bus when it deliberately locks out workers and therefore the travelling public," Mr Lee said.If a private company does not deliver the services it is contracted to provide to the public, it should not get paid - and should pay a penalty fee for non-fulfilment.
