by Kate Henry | Aug 23, 2019 | Uncategorized
When recruiting, employers will usually make a number of requests for a job applicant’s personal information in order to assess their suitability for the role. Typical requests include requests for references, prior employment information and details of the...
by Kate Henry | Aug 16, 2019 | Changes to legislation
A ‘triangular employment relationship’ usually means a situation where one company employs workers then contracts with another company (‘the end user’) to supply those employees to the end user. As there is no contractual relationship between the employee and the end...
by Kate Henry | Dec 11, 2017 | Employment Court decisions
It is increasingly recognised that the nature of work in New Zealand and overseas is changing. This can create real and perceived opportunities for organisations to reduce the risks associated with employment by using inventive ways of working. Some...
by Kate Henry | Nov 22, 2017 | discipline and dismissal
As an employment lawyer, I am often asked if an employee’s actions (or failure to act) constitute serious misconduct. This is an important question because employers are only usually able to dismiss an employee without prior warnings and without given the employee...
by Kate Henry | Nov 15, 2017 | Changes to legislation
Trial periods were introduced by the National government in 2009. Broadly, where an employment agreement includes a trial period, the employee cannot bring a personal grievance for unjustified dismissal for up to the first 90 days of employment. The rationale for...
by Kate Henry | Sep 13, 2017 | Employment Court decisions
Since the introduction of trial periods in 2009, the Employment Relations Authority and the Employment Court have interpreted both the legislation on trial periods and the clauses themselves strictly and (generally) in favour of the employee. The view is that the...
by Kate Henry | Sep 4, 2017 | Health and Safety
On 22 August 2017, the first sentencing decision under the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (the “Act”) was released. As expected, the penalties under this Act are larger than what could have been expected under its predecessor the Health and Safety in Employment...
by Kate Henry | Aug 14, 2017 | Employment Court decisions
From April this year, all individual employment agreements must comply with the new requirements regarding hours of work in the Employment Relations Act 2000. The most significant change is that ‘zero-hour’ contracts have effectively been...
by Kate Henry | Jul 24, 2017 | Employment Court decisions
It is well established that employers are entitled to restructure their business. In many cases, a restructure will result in a position becoming redundant. Provided the employer can demonstrate that the redundancy is genuine and that the employer has...
by Kate Henry | Jul 21, 2017 | Employment Court decisions
Employers are often faced with the difficult situation of having to manage an employee on long term sickness absence. While case law makes it clear that employers are not expected to keep the position of an employee who is absent on long term sick leave open...
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