New Zealand Payroll
Māori Holiday Matariki Becomes a Public Holiday
Officially, for the next 30 years, Matariki, a Māori celebration of unity, renewal, celebration, and hope, is protected as an official public holiday.
“Matariki” is the Māori name for a star cluster honored by Māori legend, and becomes visible as it rises in midwinter, heralding the start of the new year for the Māori people. With New Zeland’s large Māori population and deep Māori history, it only seems right to honor this holiday publicly.
June 24th will mark the official commemoration by New Zealand as a time for celebration of renewal, unity, as well as the honoring of loved ones who have passed since the previous rising of Matariki
In Western Astronomy, “Matariki” is known also as “Pleiades” within the constellation, Taurus.
To learn more about the legend of Matariki, Ngāti Toa Rangatira shares the story here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hgxifXxMHAw
UK Payroll
Inflation impacts real pay – biggest drop since 2013
Inflation in the UK has been a hot topic in 2020, and current trends show UK workers suffering another hit. The Office for National Statistics identified a noticeable drop in regular wages, seeing a 2.1% after inflation, which is the biggest drop recoded since 2013. Inflation is rising faster than the workforce is increasing wages for employees, making cost of living requirement impossible to keep up with for a majority of UK workers.
With falling unemployment numbers, lower than pre-pandemic readings, and more PAYE data showing an increase in payroll numbers – there was an increase in the numbers of older workers to retire during the uncertainty of the pandemic.
China Payroll
Ratification of Forced Labor International Treaties
Tension surrounding Xinjiang forced labor accusations may be the push behind recent ratification of two international treaties by Beijing last Wednesday. The US and other countries have signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act, banning imports of goods from Xinjiang due to begin in June 2022.
The full list of Fundamental Conventions include:
- Forced Labor Convention
- Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organize Convention
- Right to Organize and Collective Bargaining Convention
- Equal Remuneration Convention
- Discrimination (employment and occupation) Convention
- Abolition of Forced Labor Convention
- Minimum Age Convention
- Worst forms of Child Labor Convention
Improving labor standards between China and the world, the International Labor Organization has posed eight fundamental conventions on standards of work rights, the 13th NPC in Beijing passed the ILO’s Forced Labor Convention and Abolition of Forced Labor convention. The ILO has reported that these two additional ratifications totals to 28 for China – reinforcing China’s commitment to cleaning up all forms of forced labor within the country.
References:
New Zealand Payroll
United Kingdom Payroll
Chinese Payroll
ILO’s Eight Fundamental Conventions: https://www.ilo.org/dyn/normlex/en/f?p=NORMLEXPUB:12000:0::NO:::