“It’s discrimination.”
That’s what five former New World Victoria Park staff members have alleged as they have waited for new jobs following the catastrophic fire that levelled their workplace.
They claim Foodstuffs North Island has given positions to younger members of staff while giving older workers like themselves the cold shoulder.
Foodstuffs has pushed back strongly on the claims, arguing age, gender and ethnicity are never factors in its recruitment.
Two of the workers who spoke to the Herald had spent a combined 40 years working for the supermarket. They described waiting weeks to hear back about applications for other jobs within the Foodstuffs network.
“I’m not quite ready for the heap yet. I’ve still got plenty more years left in me,” one worker said.
“Obviously they didn’t want the experienced ones and the reliable ones, which is quite sad because that’s when you realise this isn’t fair, this is discrimination, they’re being biased.”
New World Victoria Park employed 189 staff before it was badly damaged in the fire on June 17, resulting in all the workers being made redundant.
While 80 roles were reserved for workers at the new New World supermarket in Pt Chevalier and others have been employed elsewhere, more than 70 are yet to find jobs.
The two workers, as well as First Union, which represents many workers at the supermarket, said an estimated 40% of staff will be without income from Monday when their final pay cheques arrive.
First Union organiser Jas Giri believed Foodstuffs was breaking its promise to rehire staff who were displaced after the fire at Victoria Park.
“It’s unnecessary, disheartening and confusing behaviour from a company that many of these workers have given decades of their lives to and believed they would be looked after by when the worst happened.”
Giri questioned how Foodstuffs could co-ordinate on pricing, stock, advertising and specials, but couldn’t co-ordinate rehiring experienced staff who had lost their jobs.
When one of the workers questioned why they hadn’t been offered a role, the answer they received from Foodstuffs was that “there were too many applicants”.
“We had hoped we would be put into a job somewhere. When there’s a new supermarket coming up, our hope was there,” the worker added.
The pair described declining mental health and a feeling of uncertainty – one became visibly upset during their interview with the Herald.
Following the fire on June 17, Foodstuffs North Island chief executive Chris Quin told media that staff “would be looked after”.
“Job one was making sure they’re safe, and thanking them for being amazing when this event unfolded, and now we’ll move to how we look after each and every one of them.”
When shown Quin’s words, the pair said Quin’s language now seemed like that of a politician.
Two more former New World Victoria Park staff members spoke to the Herald and asked to remain anonymous so they didn’t diminish their chances of securing replacement jobs.
They too had worked a combined 40 years for New World Victoria Park.
A fifth worker said in a statement they wished “to be treated with some dignity”.
“I dedicated seven years of my life to New World Victoria Park, I was entrusted with training staff and supervising,” the statement said.
“We were informed that New World Pt Chevalier would reserve 80 roles for the New World Victoria Park staff. I applied for this role during these meetings, giving them my CV and references. Roughly two weeks later, I was informed I did not receive a role with New World Pt Chevalier.”
The worker said they felt “discarded, hurt and invisible”.
“My confidence has dropped severely and I am now concerned for my future and the future of my co-workers/peers who are in the same situation.”
A Foodstuffs spokesman said so far, 106 former Victoria Park team members had secured roles with other Foodstuffs stores and another nine had found other employment.
“We’re continuing to connect remaining team members with roles that match their availability, travel preferences and experience,” the spokesman said.
“Over the past few weeks, we’ve hosted two full days of recruitment interviews for those interested in joining the soon-to-open New World Pt Chevalier.
“We also held a speed-interview event, where around 120 Victoria Park team members met hiring managers from 17 Auckland stores, along with representatives from Seek and a recruitment agency.”
The Foodstuffs spokesman reiterated that age, gender and ethnicity were never factors in the company’s recruiting.
“We are working hard to find opportunities, but these also need to suit the operations for each store.”
The spokesman said that hiring decisions made by the business were always based on role requirements, shift availability and candidate suitability.
He said Foodstuffs North Island stores employed nearly 4000 people over the age of 50, 76 of whom are over the age of 80.
The spokesman confirmed Foodstuffs North Island had asked all stores to fast-track Victoria Park applicants and to respond to them quickly so no one is left waiting unnecessarily.
The owner and operator of Victoria Park, senior leaders and Foodstuffs North Island’s HR team are continuing to reach out to individual team members to ensure they feel supported and informed, he said.
“We’re over halfway through reconnecting with Auckland stores that have vacancies and those we’ve spoken to are actively meeting candidates, providing feedback and hiring where possible.
“As new roles come up, we’ll continue to link available Victoria Park team members to those opportunities.”
The two workers said they weren’t giving up hope, but emphasised that they still had mouths to feed and bills to pay.
“The staff that were over 50 are the most vulnerable. If you go out to look for a job now, you’ll get turned down more than ever.”
“We now really need the help and the support and everything that we can have from a big company like that. All we ever wanted was for them to be honest with us and to be fair.”
Tom Raynel is a multimedia business journalist for the Herald, covering small business, retail and tourism.