As our ētita team mentioned in last week’s issue, the Waikato Students’ Union (WSU) isn’t really a union. So what the hell is a union, then?
A union is a bunch of people from the same workplace or industry who get together to talk to their bosses about work related issues. Members are normally represented by a union organiser, who can call employers out on their bullshit with no fear of having their hours cut or being given the shitty jobs, as they aren’t an employee.
Unions have been alive and kicking in Aotearoa since 1860, and can be thanked for our weekends, sick leave, and breaks. Prior to the The New Zealand Labour Party (a political party created by unions) being elected in 1935, concepts like ‘sick leave’ didn’t exist. Today, we have unions for almost every industry you can think of. The biggest union in Aotearoa is the Public Service Association (PSA), which is the union for those who work in parliament and state-owned enterprises such as NZ Post, local councils, District Health Boards (DHBs) and Work and Income (WINZ). The most relevant unions for working students are FIRST union, UNITE, E Tū, and the Tertiary Education Union (TEU).
The union for staff here on campus is the TEU. And yes, I mean for ALL staff, even the jobs that students hold here at the Uni. If you are a sessional assistant (or sometimes called lab demonstrator, tutor, etc), student centre receptionist, residential assistant (RA), student ambassador, Māori mentor, etc., then the TEU is YOUR union. The TEU are about to start negotiating with the Uni for better working rights for all of these roles, so if you work at the Uni and want to help, please sign up to the TEU! Membership to the TEU is free for anyone who earns under 15k a year (let’s be real, that’s all students), and all you need to do is fill out a form on the TEU website to sign up.
There is also the Student Employees Association (SEA) that anyone can join for free! The SEA is focused on improving working conditions for those who are staff and students of the Uni. We also run social events and update our membership on employment opportunities at the Uni. For more information or to sign up, email us at sea.waikato@gmail.com, find us on Facebook at Student Employees Waikato, or onInstagram at @sea.waikato.
“United we stand, divided we fall. In union there is strength” – Aesop
