Brooke van Velden: Workplace Relations Minister on the Government's plans to alter sick leave entitlements

Workers may soon be eligible for different amounts of sick leave based on the hours they work.  

This morning, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon revealed the Workplace Relations Minister is looking at altering the current 10 day entitlement.

Brooke van Velden says Cabinet has already agreed to develop a pro-rated sick leave system. 

"Is it fair that someone who works maybe one day a week, maybe two days a week gets the same sick leave entitlements as someone who works full-time? We would say no, as a Government." 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Let's get to the bottom of what is happening with
sick leave. So the Prime Minister hinted this morning that
the current ten day allowance might be cut back to five.

Speaker 2 (00:07):
Well, there's some changes coming through on workplace relation. We go.
So we had five sick days until just decided we
needed ten correct for COVID. COVID's Now can we agree
that it's gone? Yes, and we might need to do
something about sickleave.

Speaker 1 (00:21):
We might need to Brook van Valden is the workplace
relations minister.

Speaker 3 (00:25):
Hebric Hey, Heather, how are you well?

Speaker 1 (00:27):
Thank you? Are you cutting it back then? No?

Speaker 3 (00:31):
So let me just clarify a few things. So what
we are doing is saying, is it fear that someone
who works maybe one day a week two days a
week gets the same sick leave entitlement as someone who
works full time? We would say no as a government,
but there's there's no agreement from cabinet at the stage
to look at changing the overall ten day entitlement and

(00:53):
strip that back to five. We've only agreed to pro
rating sicklyve.

Speaker 1 (00:58):
Okay, So how did you feel when you heard the
Prime Minister saying this on not one but two radio
stations this morning.

Speaker 3 (01:05):
Well, look, I think we've also just got to you know,
give people the ability to be human. You know, I
don't expect anyone to be an encyclopedia make a year ago.

Speaker 1 (01:16):
Don't make excuses. I listened to it. I thought, geez,
that's not your government's policy. I'm just a numpty listening
to the radio. If I knew it, why didn't he
know what his government's policy is?

Speaker 3 (01:26):
Well, look, this was this was a discussion that we
had about a year ago. Now, so look, I think
we've got to give it.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
Did you consider at that stage?

Speaker 3 (01:34):
Look, I did go to a cabinet and ask, you know,
what did people want to do with the sickly provision.
What came out of that discussion was we weren't touching
the overall kind of ten day area, but we were looking.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
At so it was discussed.

Speaker 3 (01:50):
Oh I think, you know, we discussed a lot of things.

Speaker 1 (01:52):
I'm just trying to figure out where this never mind,
it's okay, I see, you.

Speaker 3 (01:56):
Know, but it's important. What we actually ended up with
was that we covering race.

Speaker 1 (02:00):
You should as you should, but I feel frustrated for you, Brooke,
because what you obviously wanted to talk about today was
not what you're not doing with sickly, but what you
are doing with paid parental leave. So you're bumping it up,
are you.

Speaker 3 (02:11):
That's right. So paid parental leave will be going up
to seven hundred and eighty eight dollars. I think that's
a thirty four dollars increase on the first of July.
And I know a lot of people have been struggling
with cost of living, but really importantly, people who just
have a newborn will also be struggling while they are
away from work, So the entitlement will be going up.

(02:33):
And I really congratulate anybody who has a beautiful new Bailey.

Speaker 1 (02:38):
Thank you who place relations with this stuff. Oh things
get weird sometimes.

Speaker 2 (02:47):
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