Miners to march on Parliament today

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Miners to march on Parliament today

3News NZ

Miners plan to march through Wellington today (file)

Miners plan to march through Wellington today (file)

West Coast miners from Solid Energy's Spring Creek Mine plan to take to the streets of Wellington today to protest 220 jobs being cut.

The announcement had been expected for weeks after Solid Energy said it needed to restructure because of falling global coal prices.

The company also cut jobs at its Huntly East coal mine but says making the decisions wasn't easy.

“[It’s] about as tough day as I’ve ever had,” Solid Energy chief executive Don Elder says. “This mine is just not economic.”

The Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union (EPMU) wants the Government to inject $36 million to help save Spring Creek but ministers have given no indication they are willing to intervene.

"The final decision now lies with the government," EPMU assistant national secretary Ged O'Connell said.

"This is about more than jobs, it is about providing a future for the people of Greymouth and Huntly."

Labour's west Coast MP Damien O'Connor says miners were told the situation was under review but in fact Solid Energy's "outrageous" decision was made weeks ago.

"Miners from the coalface committed their wisdom, their time and their energy to look at alternative ways to keep the mine operating," he said.

"They managed to find $60 million in savings when the management of Solid Energy had failed in 14 separate mine plans to keep costs under control."

Mr O'Connor says the job cuts are all about preparing Solid Energy for partial privatisation.

Green MP and Greymouth resident Kevin Hague is urging the Government to listen to the miners and look at the bigger picture of Spring Creek's closure.

“That translates into a massive and devastating impact on this whole community, you know the local schools, as well as retailers and contractors to the mine too.”

State-owned KiwiRail also announced yesterday it would lose 158 jobs from the infrastructure and engineering division.

3 News / RadioLIVE / NZN

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Comments

25/09/2012 9:15:24 a.m.

David wrote:

Nationals plan to create jobs is to lay 400 people off. Well that really says it all when it comes to how they have tackled unemployment doesnt it. And National are in charge of these SOE's.. National told them all to cut costs and increase returns when they first got into power. This is the end result... more unemployment. Watch the nasty right wingers disparage the unions for trying to help these families out, or refer to the march as a labour party stunt or to the marchers as a rent a crowd. John Keys mismanagement of the economy is phenomenal. Look at ACC as an example.. from world leader to absolute joke, look at winz unfairly picking on the disabled to save money. Instead of handing out food grants which clients are legally entitled too, they force their clients to go begging for food at food banks and wont even pay for the necessities of life like medications and medical aids. But they will hand over money to the wealthy by the fistful. And they will illegally spy on you... just for kicks as seen with John Keys law change to make the covert survelience carried out by the New Zealand police in hundreds of cases... legal, or in the case of Kim Dotcom use our foreign intelligence service to spy on a NZ citizen. John Key has no idea what he is doing, and the only thing he is doing is hurting people while acting like a Fascist dictator.