Business New Zealand Inc. (operating as BusinessNZ) is

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

's largest business- advocacy body. It is headquartered in

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by ...

. Vaughan Renner became the president of the BusinessNZ council in 2017 and Kirk Hope has served as the

chief executive A chief executive officer (CEO), also known as a central executive officer (CEO), chief administrator officer (CAO) or just chief executive (CE), is one of a number of corporate executives charged with the management of an organization especially ...

since 2016.

History

The history of BusinessNZ dates back more than 100 years. In 1902 several regional

employers' association An employers' organization or employers' association is a collective organization of manufacturers, retailers, or other employers of wage labor. Employers' organizations seek to coordinate the behavior of their member companies in matters of mutual ...

s came together to form the New Zealand Employers Federation, in order to present a unified

employer Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any o ...

voice in

collective bargaining Collective bargaining is a process of negotiation between employers and a group of employees aimed at agreements to regulate working salaries, working conditions, benefits, and other aspects of workers' compensation and rights for workers. The ...

and

labour dispute A labor dispute is a disagreement between an employer and employees regarding the terms of employment. This could include disputes regarding conditions of employment, fringe benefits, hours of work, tenure, and wages to be negotiated during co ...

s arbitrated by the

Arbitration Court Arbitration is a form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) that resolves disputes outside the judiciary courts. The dispute will be decided by one or more persons (the 'arbitrators', 'arbiters' or 'arbitral tribunal'), which renders the ...

. In 1905 the constitution of the Employers Federation of New Zealand was formally adopted. By 1908 the Federation represented around 6,000 members. In 1951 the Employers Federation became an incorporated society and by 1971 represented around 10,000 members. In 2001 the New Zealand Employers Federation merged with the New Zealand Manufacturers Federation to form Business New Zealand (BusinessNZ), advancing the scope of the new organisation to cover greater numbers and types of businesses. BusinessNZ comprises regional organisations EMA, Business Central, Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce and the Otago Southland Employers Association, with direct membership of around 14,000 members and more than 50,000 indirect or affiliated business members through the Affiliated Industries Group. From 2009 BusinessNZ established new divisions to promote manufacturing, exporting, energy companies, larger businesses and companies working towards environmental sustainability.

Membership

Membership is drawn from the Major Companies Group and from four of New Zealand's largest regional business organisations: * the Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA) * BusinessCentral * the Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce * the Otago Southland Employers' Association BusinessNZ's Major Companies Group (MCG) helps ensure that New Zealand's largest companies are heard in policy, business and economic debate. The MCG is a working group with a collective weight of influence that enables it to provide strong counsel to government and other key decision makers. Around 70 members, representing a large proportion of New Zealand's

GDP Gross domestic product (GDP) is a monetary measure of the market value of all the final goods and services produced and sold (not resold) in a specific time period by countries. Due to its complex and subjective nature this measure is ofte ...

, have joined the MCG since its establishment in 2008. The work of the Major Companies Group takes place within the overarching governance of the BusinessNZ Council.

Advocacy

BusinessNZ advocacy focuses on several issues, including competition, free trade, sustainability,

industry self-regulation Industry self-regulation is the process whereby members of an industry, trade or sector of the economy monitor their own adherence to legal, ethical, or safety standards, rather than have an outside, independent agency such as a third party entit ...

, among others.

Structure

Governing body

BusinessNZ is governed by an elected council, with its 17 members drawn from the four regional associations. The council meets six times a year.

Divisions

BusinessNZ has several divisions, including * ExportNZ

References

{{reflist

External links

BusinessNZ

ExportNZ

ManufacturingNZ

Sustainable Business Council

BusinessNZ Energy Council

Buy New Zealand Made

Employers and Manufacturers Association (EMA)

Business Central

Canterbury Employers' Chamber of Commerce

Otago-Southland Employers' Association
Business organisations based in New Zealand Conservatism in New Zealand