Kotahitanga teeshirts
Kotahitanga – Unity, Solidarity
UnionAID is about kotahitanga between working people. When we support workers organising for their rights beyond our borders, we strengthen the global movement for decent work and fair conditions for all.
Proceeds support UnionAID projects with international union partners.
T-shirts are manufactured by Thread Project, a NZ-owned and operated business based out of Clevedon, NZ. They are guided by values of fairness, quality, community support, sustainability, and social empowerment.
UnionAID’s unique approach
UnionAID isn’t about charity, it’s about solidarity between working people. We recognise that the challenges faced by workers in the Asia-Pacific region are connected to our own struggles in New Zealand. When we support workers organising for their rights beyond our borders, we strengthen the global movement for decent work and fair conditions for all.
Solidarity, not charity
Our approach is fundamentally different because:
- We back worker-led action: Rather than imposing outside solutions, we support local unions to develop their own strategies and campaigns
- We build lasting power: Instead of temporary relief, we invest in building organisations that can fight for workers’ rights for years to come
- We respect local knowledge: Union partners determine their own priorities based on their understanding of local conditions
- We focus on collective solutions: Individual handouts don’t change systems, organised workers do
A shared struggle
In Aotearoa New Zealand, the rights we enjoy today, minimum wages, the 40-hour week, paid leave, were won through collective action by workers who came before us. By supporting UnionAID, you extend this tradition of solidarity to workers fighting similar battles across our region.