News & Views
King’s Birthday Public Holiday
Kings Birthday - A simple guide to help you manage public holiday pay and entitlements smoothly.
ERA Confirms Dismissal Was Justified
The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) recently ruled on a case involving an employee's dismissal on medical grounds.
Minimum Wage Increase Effective 1 April 2025
As of 1 April 2025, the minimum wage will increase to $23.50 gross per hour, an increase of $0.35 from the current rate of $23.15.
Contractor or Employee – Uber New Zealand
The Court of Appeal ruled that 4 Uber drivers are employees, not independent contractors, by applying the correct legal test.
Closedown Requirements – 14 days’ written notice
If you are planning to have a closedown of all or part of your business during the holiday season, you will need to provide 14 days written notice of your intention to close down.
The Importance of Getting it Right
Recent case law regarding performance management emphasizes the importance of managing risk.
Ensure Your Business Stays Compliant with New Zealand’s Employment Law.
Navigating HR compliance in New Zealand can be complex, with numerous laws and regulations governing employment practices. Here are some key areas of HR compliance:
Transform Your HR
In today’s uncertain economic climate, businesses face unique challenges. From fluctuating markets to rising operational costs, maintaining a competitive edge requires agility and strategic planning.
Contractor or Employee
It is good to see the Minister for Workplace Relations is proposing to provide clarity as to the status of contractors v employees.
Proposed Changes to the Holidays Act 2003
For years, employers have been calling for changes to the Holidays Act 2003 to address its complexities and uncertainties. The good news is that significant reforms are on the horizon that promise to address long-standing issues. Unfortunately, we still have a long way to go before these changes are implemented.
Risk mitigation, Restructuring
Restructuring is one of the tools to ensure businesses manage through these challenging economic times.
Working across the ditch - the differences between New Zealand and Australian Employment Law
One of our frequently asked questions pertains to the differences between Australian (AU) and New Zealand (NZ) employment laws.
Having head offices in AU and employees in NZ can pose challenges if you are not familiar with the variations in employment legislation and the requirements of employing staff in these two countries.
While AU and NZ share many common principles, there are key differences that if overlooked, can lead to complications and real implications for offshore AU businesses.
We aim to break down these differences for those of you in this situation.
New Government, New Employment Law
All business are now able to utilise the 90-day trial period even if you employ 20 or more people.
We discuss below the benefits of including a 90-day trial period clause in your employment agreement, as well as potential pitfalls you may encounter.
Christmas and Annual Leave
As we approach the holiday season it is the time of year for annual closedowns, Christmas parties but for some companies it can be the busiest time of year.
We get a lot of questions around Christmas party management, absenteeism, your ability to request employees to take annual leave and employment agreements therefore, we have prepared some guidance for you,
Workplace Health and Safety
We understand here at Knowhow the intricacies of HR and recognising the challenges that business owners face, particularly in areas like Health and safety liability. Now with the rise of psychosocial hazards, we acknowledge the added difficulty in navigating these issues.
Managing in Tough Times
The Risks of Getting it Wrong
There are strict requirements regarding consultation, providing relevant information and potential redeployment options before an employer can reach a decision to disestablish positions. It’s not rocket science, but it is reasonably intricate.
If the process is found to be flawed and the outcome predetermined, employers face the risk of a personal grievance (PG) claim for unfair or unjustified dismissal.
The financial risks of a PG are significant. If a claim is successful, the cost includes a minimum of three months pay, compensation for hurt and humiliation and representation costs, let alone the value of time spent by the employer.
Election News and more
Now is a prudent time to update you all that as an employer you must give your employees time off to vote in the general (parliamentary) election on polling day (Saturday 14 October) if:
they are (or are qualified to be) registered as an elector of the district where the election is, and
they haven’t had a reasonable opportunity to vote before starting work.
The amount of time an employee can have off to vote depends on whether they are required for essential work or services.
Unless your employees are in essential service that have to work after 3pm, you must allow them to leave work no later than 3pm, for the rest of the day without deductions from their pay.
If they don’t have to work after 3pm on the polling day for essential work or services, you must allow your employees reasonable time to get to vote, therefore 3pm is the latest for the rest of the day without deductions from their pay for this time off work.
If they are required to work for essential work or services after 3pm on the polling day you must allow them to leave work for a reasonable time to vote. You can’t make any deductions from their pay for time up to 2 hours that they spend off work.
If you do not comply to these regulations, you could be fined $1000 per employee.
If you have any questions on how this might relate to you, do not hesitate to get in touch.
Timeframe for raising a Personal Grievance relating to Sexual Harassment has been extended
Effective from 13 June 2023, the Employment Relations Act now provides an extended timeframe for employees to raise a personal grievance relating to sexual harassment.
The legislation now grants employees a 12-month timeframe to raise a personal grievance relating to allegations of sexual harassment.
Reserve Bank Predictions 2023
Last week Reserve Bank Governor Orr predicted a very difficult year ahead. Recession in 2023 and minimal growth in the first half of 2024. Despite the inflationary pressure, low unemployment figures have been heralded by the government as an indicator that New Zealand is in reasonable shape. Adrian Orr’s message changed that with unemployment – currently 3.3% - predicted to rise to 5.7% in 2025.
COVID-19 Update - Alert Level Changes & Vaccines and Employment
Vaccine Certificates
Little information has been released about vaccination certificates and how this system will work when close contact businesses such as hairdressers and hospitality can reopen under the traffic light system.
What we do know is that businesses which are considered to be ‘high risk’ will be required to use the vaccine certificate system, and while the system will be optional for some other businesses, it will not be available for every business.