Te Tiriti, Tikanga and Work: Collective Agreement Clauses and the Experiences of Māori Workers
Description
The Community Research Te Auaha Pito Mata Awards are held to celebrate the impact of emerging researchers whose work uplifts communities, strengthens knowledge, and creates positive change in Aotearoa.
This webinar series introduces the 2026 Award winners and offers an opportunity to hear directly from these inspiring researchers as they share their work, insights, and aspirations for the future.
In this webinar, we meet Ria Te Uira Holmes, winner of the Tangata Whenua Researcher Award, and learn about her thesis ‘Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Tikanga Māori and Labour Frameworks: An Exploration of Collective Agreement Clauses and the Experiences of Māori Workers.’
Ria's research is embedded in kaupapa Māori foundations and shares whānau stories and lived experience, exploring tikanga as law. Through careful, principled relationships, strong relational ethics, and a clear commitment to Māori data sovereignty, the research names one of the most persistent inequities in Aotearoa’s public sector: the unrecognised and unpaid cultural labour of Māori workers, and the absence of enforceable Te Tiriti obligations in employment relations.
Importantly, this is strengths-based research. It affirms tikanga as first law, recognises Māori expertise, and offers a pathway for change that has the potential to improve the conditions under which Māori work, contribute, and lead across Aotearoa.
Facilitated by Joanne Waitoa, this kōrero will explore they key findings of the research, Ria’s experience as an indigenous researcher and what Te Tiriti and Tikanga can mean for the future of employment law and its impact on Māori workers.
Presenter bios
Ria Te Uira Holmes
He uri tēnei nō Te Ātiawa ki Whakarongotai, Ngāti Toa Rangatira, Ngāti Raukawa ki te Tonga. Dr Ria Te Uira Holmes is a lecturer at Te Herenga Waka, Victoria University of Wellington. Her research and teaching explore Tikanga Māori, Te Tiriti o Waitangi, Indigenous legal methodologies and Labour Law.
Joanne Waitoa
Joanne Waitoa (Ngāti Porou) is an advisor to central government focused on Te Tiriti o Waitangi and te taiao. As a researcher, her work explores kaupapa Māori methodologies, political participation, and diverse economies. She is a kaitiaki in the Community Research tangata whenua caucus and a trustee for Para Kore, Wellbeing Economy Alliance Aotearoa, and Waiwaste. She is also a rūnanga delegate for Te Pūkenga Here Tikanga Mahi Public Service Association.
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