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- cross-posted to:
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Opponents of the Mt Messenger bypass project in Taranaki have a new beef with Waka Kotahi - the cost of ‘Pieday Friday’ although the agency is disputing the cost.
They say the staff event - also known as “Whānau Friday” - could cost up to $500,000 over the life of the project. But Waka Kotahi said it would cost about $50,000 and was good for morale.
But New Plymouth Mayor Neil Holdom - a vocal critic of Waka Kotahi’s road maintenance programme - had no appetite for that argument. "If you think, what does a good employer working in a reasonable remote site do, and anybody who begrudges someone working hard an $8 pie once a month sounds pretty petty to me.
Holdom said it was a bit rich for opponents of the project, who had cost the country millions of dollars fighting it through the courts, to complain about the cost of the pies.
It’s not clear to me whether this is a weekly or monthly thing. Is it a poorly worded article or does the author not know? Is it weekly, but the New Plymouth Mayor says he things monthly is ok?
Anyway, I think if you raised their pay by $8 a week no one would argue. But because it’s a pie then it’s wasted money.
Edit: Oh I see, it’s monthly but the complaining group assumed it was weekly because it’s called Whānau Friday/Pieday Friday
If they’re supplying pies in bulk to the workers it seems like they could be much cheaper than $8 too. I wonder who came up with the figure?
Every figure in that article is made up from on the spot assumptions, except the $50,000 tag that Waka Kotahi said it would cost.
Edit: In terms of the $8, the project actually broke down the cost in the article. It costs $400 each time, and is for 80-100 people. So you’re looking at no more than $5 per person.
But if people don’t make up random bullshit how ever will they get completely unnecessarily mad about things that don’t concern them?