Stan Rodger

Stanley Joseph Rodger (13 February 1940 – 29 May 2022) was a New Zealand politician of the Labour Party. He was president of the Public Service Association between 1970 and 1973 and Member of Parliament for Dunedin North from 1978 to 1990.

Biography

Early life and career Rodger was born in Dunedin on 13 February 1940, the son of Edith Rodger (née Lloyd) and James Stanley Rodger. He was educated at Kaikorai Primary School and King Edward Technical College. In 1968, he married Anne Patricia O'Connor and the couple went on to have two children, including Craig Rodger who became the Beverly Professor of Physics at the University of Otago.

In 1957, Rodger began his career in the public service in Dunedin working at the Ministry of Works and Development, later moving to Wellington to take up another position at the Ministry. He remained at the Ministry of Works and Development until 1974 when he transferred to the newly created Housing Corporation.

He became involved with the Public Service Association (PSA) and became vice-president from 1967 to 1970. From 1970 to 1973, he was president of the PSA. Between 1970 and 1974 he was the chairman of the Combined State Unions and from 1976 to 1978 he was the assistant secretary of the PSA.

Political career

In 1963 he put himself forward to replace Phil Connolly the retiring MP for Dunedin Central, but lost out to Brian MacDonell. Aged only 22 at the time Rodger was informed by Arnold Nordmeyer that his age was against him. However, Connolly subsequently gave Rodger encouragement to pursue politics.

Rodger stood unsuccessfully for the Labour Party in the for and in the for . In 1965, 1968 and 1971, he stood as a Labour candidate for the Wellington Hospital Board without success. In 1968 he also stood for a seat on the Wellington City Council, but was likewise unsuccessful. In 1973, he stood for vice-president of the Labour Party and was seen as the front-runner for the position. However, he finished only third behind the winner, Eddie Isbey, and Jonathan Hunt.

Rodger represented the electorate of Dunedin North in Parliament from 1978 to 1990, when he retired and was replaced by Pete Hodgson. From 1980 to 1984 he was Labour's junior whip. From 1982 to 1984 he was Shadow Postmaster-General.

He was appointed Minister of Labour and State Services by Prime Minister David Lange in the Fourth Labour Government. With his union background he happily conceded a media tag that as Minister of Labour he was "a poacher turned gamekeeper" also stating that his union background would be advantageous to all parties in industrial disputes.

Post-parliamentary career In December 1990, after exiting parliament, Rodger took up a position at the University of Otago as the assistant registrar and secretary of the School of Dentistry. He was later appointed director of the Southern Regional Health Authority (RHA) and in 1997 was appointed a member of a board of review into RHAs. He was a vocal critic of Sukhi Turner's performance as mayor of Dunedin and endorsed former Labour MP Clive Matthewson (and his successor as Minister of State Services) at the 1998 mayoral election.

In 2000, Rodger was appointed chair of the review team tasked with conducting a ministerial review of the Education Review Office. In 2004, he was appointed deputy chairman of Transpower New Zealand. In 2006, he was appointed to the Electricity Commission, and he stepped down from his chairmanship role at Transpower.

In the 2019 New Year Honours, Rodger's wife, Anne Rodger, was appointed a Member of the New Zealand Order of Merit, for services to women.

Rodger died in Dunedin on 29 May 2022, aged 82. His wife, Anne Rodger, died on 30 November 2023.