If employers take only one thing out of the sacking of one of Australia’s best rugby players it should be this – in certain circumstances, an employer does have an interest, and the right to be interested, in an employee’s behaviour outside of the workplace.
Ashley-Jayne Lodge
A recent Employment Court decision has issued a stern reminder about availability provisions and traditional overtime requirements.
This week the government confirmed that a referendum will be held at the general election next year on whether cannabis should be legalised. The referendum will be binding, provided the current government is re-elected.
The Employment Relations Amendment Act 2018 (the Amendment Act) has received royal assent, meaning it has passed into law. Some provisions of the Act have taken effect already, with the remainder to take effect on 6 May this year.
In December 2018 the Employment Relations Amendment Act passed through the final stages of law making and was granted Royal Assent. This article deals with some of the significant changes made by the Act, most of which will take effect from Monday 6 May 2019.
New Zealand Immigration update: December 2018. This update is for employers enforcing a mandatory close-down period over the Christmas break, and who hire migrant workers on temporary entry visas.
The recent Employment Court case of Roach v Nazareth Care Charitable Trust Board [2018] NZEmpC 123 provides a timely reminder that caution is required when relying on a 90 day trial period.
Last week the Employment Court found retailer Smiths City Group Limited (Smiths City) has breached the Minimum Wage Act 1983 by failing to pay employees for morning meetings held before the store opens. Smiths City are required to conduct an audit to quantify the cost of non-compliance, and then make ...
The Employment Court has issued the first banning order pursuant to the Employment Relations Act 2000, two years after the sanction was introduced into legislation in 2016.
Recent Labour Inspectorate investigations found New Zealand employers are taking advantage of schemes such as Willing Workers on Organic Farms (WWOOFers). These schemes generally involve seeking travellers working for free in exchange for accommodation, and sometimes food.
Many employers were incorrectly treating such workers as volunteers in order to save ...
The Employment Court decision of A Labour Inspector of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment v Tech 5 Recruitment [2016] NZEmpC 167 has clarified the ambiguity surrounding employment premiums.
Tech 5 Recruitment (“Tech 5”) is a labour hire business that began recruiting employees from the Philippines to work in ...
A legislative change in France requires companies with more than 50 employees to guarantee those employees the ‘right to disconnect’ from their smart phones and other technology that gives them access to emails outside of work hours.
Last year saw significant changes to the Employment Relations Act 2000 in relation to agreed hours of work, availability provisions, and zero hour contracts. Employment agreements must be complaint with the new provisions by 1 April 2017.