Membership

The Postal Workers Union of Aotearoa (PWUA) is a union which has been representing workers in the postal industry since 1994. Membership is open to any postal worker, and includes delivery agents, riders, mail sorters, team leaders, support staff, processing officers, customer service, drivers, admin, box lobby and many others. Managers are permitted to belong provided that they are regarded as worker-friendly.

 

Aim

The PWUA is an incorporated society which is registered under law as a union. The primary aim of the PWUA is to protect and promote the conditions of employment, economic and social interests, and quality of life of its members and workers generally. A key way of achieving this is to foster, amongst its members, individual commitment and participation as well as collective strength and responsibility.

 

How it works

The PWUA is run by an executive. The executive is a group of postal workers who are elected by the members. Any member is eligible to be elected to the executive. At each workplace the members elect one or more delegates to represent their interests in the workplace. The executive is usually elected from these delegates.

 

Expert help

The executive engages the services of specialists (organizers, lawyers, administrators, educators etc.) to look after members’ interests and further the aims of the union.

 

Knowledge of the job

The union is run by postal workers, so they have the knowledge and first hand experience to help members deal with issues on the job.

 

Collective strength

The PWUA has a National structure and two District structures.

• The Northern District is based in Auckland and serves workers from Taupo northwards.

• The Southern District is based in Wellington and serves workers in the rest of New Zealand.

• The National body deals with issues of national importance, such as the NZ Post / PWUA Collective Employment Agreement, because the collective strength gives workers greater bargaining power.

The District bodies deal with local issues, because they have knowledge of the local conditions.

 

NZ Council of Trade Unions

The PWUA is affiliated to the NZ CTU, the largest democratic body in the country. This means it can join with other unions in campaigns and programmes which are designed to improve the lives of working people throughout New Zealand.

 

On-call and temporary workers

On-call and temporary workers are especially vulnerable in the workplace. The PWUA encourages the membership of these workers so that their rights and entitlements can be protected.

 

PWUA pride

A feature of PWUA membership is the pride that members feel in belonging to a genuine workers’ union, where the working members democratically make the decisions which guide the union and determine their future.

 

Union fees

$6.95 per week for workers employed for 30 or more hours per week.

$3.45 per week for on-call workers, or workers employed for less than 30 hours per week.

Fees can be deducted directly from members’ pay.