Page 77 - Print 21 July-August 2019

Association News News updates from the printing industry
Work with your association – we are working for you
PrintNZ CEO Ruth Cobb says the association is fully focused on delivering benefits for members.
PrintNZ’s vision is
to help our member businesses be the best they can be, in order to ensure that print
remains a strong and viable industry, and is an active choice when people are looking to communicate. This vision is what shapes the work that we do every day, and encompasses a broad range of projects that we get involved in. These fit under four key pillars:
• Member Services
• Marketing of the Industry • Training
• Lobbying
The first six months of 2019 have flown by, and this is an opportunity to provide a snapshot of what PrintNZ has been working on during that time, and remind the industry to make the most of what your associations have to offer you.
Member Services
These are the areas where we work directly with members
to help them with matters particular to their own business.
The single biggest service we provide in this area is access
to advice and assistance to help manage staff. PrintNZ works daily with members, both small and large, to
guide them through the ever-changing minefield of employment relations, steering them through redundancies, restructuring, disciplinary issues, and providing employment agreements, policies and procedures.
As it becomes increasingly expensive to get it wrong taking the time to get some
Working with members every day: Ruth Cobb, CEO PrintNZ
are always looking out for opportunities to benefit our members and our industry.
Marketing
A key role for PrintNZ is marketing the print industry.
For the last four years PrintNZ has been a partner
in the Value of Paper and
Print (VOPP) and Two Sides programmes. VOPP promotes the effectiveness of print,
and Two Sides promotes sustainability and debunks the myths that circulate about print.
PrintNZ has been working with these two campaigns,
and providing collateral to members to pass on to their sales teams and customers,
but in 2019 we are taking a significant step up and going direct to the customers of
print. Our industry knows how powerful print is, so instead of preaching to the converted, we will now look to raise awareness with retailers, marketers and
changes mooted for the Industry Training sector, which could see a major transformation to the way training is delivered in the industry.
Training
Which leads into our fourth pillar – training. Having skilled staff is important in every business and with the current low unemployment figures, finding those staff can be difficult. PrintNZ actively works with Competenz to promote workplace training and to develop training programmes for the industry, both in core skills and the broader generic skills that a business needs to function efficiently and profitably.
Training needs to be front- of-mind for all businesses to ensure that the skills that are so important to our industry are maintained to a high standard. And it is our job to make sure that training matches what our industry needs.
You have a role
to play too
While we are working for
our members every day, the relationship is two-way with members needing to engage, participate and make use of the association. The following are a few actions you can take to engage with your industry association, whether it is PrintNZ, PIAA, TRMC, VC,
or another association.
Keep informed about the association’s activities and lend your support.
Participate in seminars, conferences, and social events.
Let us know about issues affecting your business.
Use our services – come to us for HR, OSH and other advice.
Participate in training to benefit the future of your business and the industry.
Make sure you tap into the resources available to you. 21
“PrintNZ works daily with members, both small and large, to guide them through the ever- changing minefield of employment relations.”
free advice can save a fortune, and more than cover the cost of membership.
Health and Safety is another area where compliance costs and fines have increased substantially. Matched
with the expected lift in performance standards in this area you cannot afford to ignore your responsibilities. Again PrintNZ has the documentation and staff to guide you through this, and can provide on-site assistance with establishing and maintaining a robust system.
In addition to these direct services, we provide members with access to discount schemes, industry data including wage rates, and
brand owners. We will also introduce the Open Up To Mail Campaign, which will provide a focus on the direct mail sector of the industry.
Lobbying
A close eye is kept on proposed changes to Government policy that may impact businesses in the print industry. Working with feedback from industry members, submissions on proposed legislation changes are put forward based on what is best for our industry.
Last year we spent substantial time advocating for changes
to proposed Employment Legislation, and in 2019 the focus has been the substantial
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