Bid to close KiwiSaver loophole sparks discrimination row

The Auckland employers' main mouthpiece and hard man Alasdair Thompson and Government bovver boy Trevor Mallard have been in a slug-fest over KiwiSaver. Thompson's Northern Employers and Manufacturers' Association has launched effective newspaper ads, attacking Mallard because the Government intends to push through changes. Thompson claims the changes discriminate against young and old workers and those who can't or won't join the scheme. Mallard responds that Thompson doesn't give a toss about the workers and is only kicking up a fuss because some employers want to include their compulsory KiwiSaver contribution in employment negotiations. Andrew Little, leader of New Zealand's biggest trade union, the EPMU, says some of his members have been told by their employers to take a reduced wage increase by the amount the employer... [read full story]