'Women's Solidarity in the Neoliberal 1990s: the National Women's Committee of the Service Workers' Union, Aotearoa New Zealand'

The early 1990s was a low point for the New Zealand women’s movement.  After years of campaigning for equal pay for work of equal value, the Employment Equity Act had been legislated in 1990 and then immediately repealed when the National Party was elected to government later that year.  In 1991, welfare benefits were cut dramatically and the Employment Contracts Act deregulated the labour market.  Trade union membership was effectively halved by 1995 and women workers bore the brunt of de-unionisation.  For example, the Service Workers’ Union (SWU), with a predominantly female membership, declined by 65% between 1991 and 1995.  Despite this loss of resources and membership power, the SWU Women’s Committee continued to be active.  Drawing on oral history and union records, this paper will examine how women kept the Women’s Committee alive, their issues and campaigns, and how they built solidarity – globally, nationally and locally – during hard times.  This history is situated in the current context of the Service and Food Workers’ Union 2013 equal pay for work of equal value win for care workers in the New Zealand Employment Court, Service & Food Workers Union Nga Ringa Tota Inc vs Terranova Homes and Care Ltd.