Managers in the money as workers suffer 

Source: NZPAPaula Bennett

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The government is coming under fire for keeping management in the money while workers take pay cuts.

ONE News has discovered early plans for the nine day working fortnight scheme would have required top management to cut their pay along with workers, but the government's position changed following talks with interest groups.

When Fisher and Paykel asked its staff to reduce hours to save the company, the chief executive and management also volunteered to cut their pay.

But under the nine day scheme the government decided that such a sacrifice by management was not necessary.

Robert Reid from the National Distribution Union believes a CEO on hundreds of thousands of dollars could take the same cut as workers who may be on only $12.50 an hour.

Cabinet papers obtained by ONE News show the initial criteria included "...an expectation that the chief executive and their management reports will agree to a commensurate reduction in their pay."

But that proposal was abandoned only three weeks out from the scheme's March launch because it was too complicated.

"It was decided that it may stop some businesses from going into the scheme, it was actually quite complex," says Social Development Minister Paula Bennett.

Across the board pay cuts might offer more to struggling businesses wishing to make savings but the minister says the job support scheme is not aimed at those kind of firms.

"The job support scheme is one of those that was carefully balanced so it wasn't going to help businesses that were really in dire straits because actually this wouldn't be enough to save them," says Bennett.

Labour claims the scheme is more about appearance than real assistance.

"On the surface it looks like it's more to do with the government trying to show they're doing something rather than a reality of something happening," says social development spokeswoman Annette King.

The government says the scheme has saved hundreds of jobs, but there is concern in some quarters that taxpayer money has been used to keep some businesses profits up and managers in the money.