The Mike Hosking Breakfast

The Transport Minister says councils have other options to increase revenue, not just through higher fares.   NZTA's ordering councils take a higher revenue share and agree to new targets by December 19th.  Public transport authorities have requested an urgent meeting, saying the targets would see bus, train, and ferry prices surge.   But Simeon Brown told Mike Hosking it's a lazy approach to just increase fares.    He says councils have a range of tools including increased advertising, sponsorships, corporate fare schemes, and renting out space at train stations.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Workers earning over $180,000 will lose the right to raise unjustified dismissal claims under a new policy. Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden said the change allows more flexible dismissal processes for high-income employees. The policy aims to enhance labour market flexibility and will be introduced through the Employment Relations Amendment Bill next year. Workers making over $180,000 a year will no longer be able to raise an unjustified dismissal claim if they lose their job once a new Government policy takes effect. The upcoming change to the Employment Relations Act “will enable employers to ensure they have the right fit for their high-impact leadership and specialist roles”, Workplace Relations and Safety Minister Brooke van Velden said. The policy, described as a “more flexible dismissal process for high-income employees”, delivers on the Act-National coalition agreement to set an income threshold above which personal grievances cannot be pursued. “This policy is about offering workers and employers more choice when negotiating contracts. “Employers and employees are free to opt back into unjustified dismissal protection if they choose to or negotiate their own dismissal procedures that work for them,” van Velden said. She said the policy was “paving the way for the next generation of leadership” when she spoke to Mike Hosking on Newstalk ZB. “One of the classic cases of grievance from businesses is you want to take a chance on someone, but you’re too afraid if something goes wrong, how on earth will it work out.” “You’ve got someone in the workforce who is maybe quite skilled, got a good attitude, but if you push them up to that next leadership level into management, you know, if it doesn’t work out and they aren’t a good fit, this allows you to move them on.” Van Velden said many people would have worked with a manager “who has led to poor productivity, low morale, and the boss and the workers are just sitting there and waiting for this person for years and years to want to move on”. The change would provide greater labour market flexibility and would benefit employers and workers, she said. “This policy allows employers to give workers a go in these high-impact positions without having to risk a costly and disruptive dismissal process if things don’t work out.” The income threshold of $180,000 will cover about 3.4% of the workforce. The threshold will be adjusted annually to match increases in average weekly earnings. “The change will be progressed through the Employment Relations Amendment Bill, which I aim to introduce in 2025,” van Velden said. The income threshold refers to a regular base salary and excludes other income such as incentive payments and benefits like vehicle use. Employees earning over $180,000 will still be able to raise other types of personal grievances. Jaime Lyth is a multimedia journalist for the New Zealand Herald focusing on crime and breaking news. Lyth began working under the NZ Herald masthead in 2021 as a reporter for the Northern Advocate in Whangārei. LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

A business think tank is critical of the first part of New Zealand's Covid-19 review, believing it's not comprehensive enough.  Phase 1 of the pandemic response report from the Royal Commission of Inquiry brings 39 recommendations.  They include planning for quarantine measures, allowing movement of public sector capability during a pandemic, and assigning a minister to lead implementation.   New Zealand Initiative Senior Fellow, Murray Horn told Mike Hosking the report misses some areas.  He says it doesn't explore whether damage to the economy and people's faith in government was more serious than needed.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I am more knowledgeable about the Pike River tragedy than Tony Gibson's Auckland Port court case.  But out of Pike River came the law that got Gibson, as former boss of the Port of Auckland, over the death of a worker.  He has been found guilty. He may appeal.  You would imagine if the verdict stands and a penalty is imposed, it would have a severe chilling effect in the world of CEOs.  Just where is the line for a boss in looking after the safety of the staff, beyond the broad-based and widely understood rules?  Do court cases like this now reset those boundaries as to what you must, or might do, in regards safety in a large workplace?  Some workplaces are inherently dangerous because of their nature.  Rules will be in place, but how tight do those rules need to be? And it's out of that sort of expectation that life in general can sometimes be brought to a sort-of standstill by the “just in case” mentality.  Work and safety is driven by good intention but is stifling in the real world.  In taking the very specific responsibility right up the chain to the corner office for a person falling off, or falling over, or into something, that's a tremendous amount of very specific expectation – especially in a large company when the numerical gap between the boss and a bloke on the floor, or the machine, might well be large. It's an interesting concept, to judicially skip any number of people between the victim and the CEO. What I know about Pike River was it was a top-down mess. If you were looking for blame, there was no shortage of it to spread around. A lot of people wanted Peter Whittall to pay, but that was more predicated on him being an easy target, not because he, and he alone, was responsible. How much of the new law came out of the same mentality?  "Don't worry about the detail or fairness, let's just look to have someone pay". And if that is what drove it, is that good law? Or is it a lot of potential trouble and a reason not to be the boss?See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast for Thursday 28th of November, we get reaction from the Reserve Bank and Steven Joyce after our last OCR cut of the year.  Phase 1 of the Covid inquiry is complete, and inquiry chair Professor Tony Blakely has some surprising comments about vaccine mandates and lockdowns.  Mike couldn't believe Mitch James was quitting music, so had to get a friend of the show on for one last time as a musician.  Get the Mike Hosking Breakfast Full Show Podcast every weekday morning on iHeartRadio, or wherever you get your podcasts.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Black Caps are riding the increased wave of support from the public as they head into the opening test against England in Christchurch, starting this morning.  Day three on Saturday is sold out, while minimal tickets remain to today's opening day.  Black Caps all-rounder Rachin Ravindra told Mike Hosking the team's historic whitewash in India has helped the cause.  He says that there’s a lot more people congratulating them for their efforts in India as they’re walking around.  “That’s what we want right? We want the public to be behind us, and hopefully we can keep inspiring people to keep playing the game.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Mitch James’ eleven year career is set to come to an end.  His beginnings were humble, busking on the streets of London and performances at open mic nights that lead to world tours and over a decade of music.   James’ final single ‘Beautiful Stranger’ came out last month and his final album is imminent, with only a few remaining bits of admin to complete before the album’s release.  He told Mike Hosking that it’s been a crazy journey but he’s come to the end of his tether with the entertainment industry.  “It’s a very messed up, and at times evil, industry, that yeah, I think I’ve got nothing more to prove.”  “You’re looking at the guitar in the morning and it’s not looking as, as beautiful as it used to,” James said.  “I felt like I needed to step away to sort of preserve that core love for the music.”  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The Reserve Bank remains concerned about domestic inflation as it points to more OCR cuts next year following the latest 50 basis point cut.  Inflation is now at 2.2%, with weak global demand pushing tradeable inflation down to -1.6%.  But non-tradeable inflation —things like insurance, rates, power and rents— remains at 4.9%.  Reserve Bank Assistant Governor Karen Silk told Mike Hosking that needs to be brought down to just under 3%, which is where it's historically sat.  She says this type of inflation, which is less responsive to monetary policy, remains persistent.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

The outgoing head of the Covid inquiry has found vaccine mandates caused huge pain to a "substantial minority” during the pandemic.  Tony Blakely says the Government should look at whether their benefits outweighed the harm they caused.  Blakely will deliver the report from the first phase of the Royal Commission of Inquiry to Internal Affairs Minister Brook van Velden today, but the Government may not release it until next year.  He says New Zealand did well, although mistakes were made.  Blakely describes the response as a game of two halves, with New Zealand doing well in the first year, and less so after that – which isn't surprising given the length of the pandemic.  He says there’s still work to be done after their comprehensive investigations.   Blakely told Mike Hosking they've done about 80% of the work, with incoming Chair Grant Illingworth's team coming in to do the next 20%.   He says they may uncover new findings on topics they look at more in depth, such as mandates and vaccine harm.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

It’s a tale of two economies, for now.  The Reserve Bank is forecasting more OCR cuts next year, sooner than previously expected, after yesterday's 50-basis point cut to 4.25%.  But Governor Adrian Orr says growth remains weak globally.  Former Finance Minister Steven Joyce told Mike Hosking there are green shoots in the economy, but they're confined to specific sectors like commercial property, dairy, kiwifruit, and the tech sector.  He says big-employing industries like service and retail have been flat as a pancake, alongside residential property and construction.  LISTEN ABOVE See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.