Articles related to ‘Employment’
Tuesday, 31 January, 2012 | Alan Knowsley
Partner, Alan Knowsley, was approached for comment on employment law concerning grievances resulting from office Christmas parties and whether or not these were happening in higher numbers. Alan’s view was that there is always an increase of grievances in January but that relates to the timing of Christmas parties in December. He had no evidence of a general increase this year over any other year. He always advises clients to… Continue reading
Monday, 16 January, 2012 | Andrew Greig
In a recent case before the Employment Relations Authority, an employee allegedly injured another employee to such an extent that he required hospitalisation.
The employer immediately suspended the employee on full pay and carried out an investigation in which it found that the employee had injured the other employee and that his actions constituted serious misconduct. He was dismissed.
The Authority agreed with the employer in so far… Continue reading
Thursday, 12 January, 2012 | Alan Knowsley
An employee who was fired for excessive personal phone and email use has been reinstated on an interim basis, because the evidence suggests that other employees were not dealt with in the same way for similar use, and the process followed by the employer may not have been fair.
The employee had received a previous warning for excessive personal calls and emails some years previously that had expired*, plus… Continue reading
Thursday, 12 January, 2012 | Alan Knowsley
A manager who used her staff discount card to buy items for family members, and who put discount items away so she could buy them herself, has lost her claim for unjustified dismissal.
Her employer had clear policies on the use of the staff discount card, and holding of items, which had been brought to the manager’s attention several times.
Her continued breaches of the policies meant that… Continue reading
Monday, 19 December, 2011 | Andrew Greig
Dealing with employment disciplinary issues and performance reviews can be stressful for employers and there are steps which must be followed to ensure that you get the process correct. A failure to properly handle the investigation or review may result in a personal grievance claim and that can be expensive as well as the cause of wasted time which would be better spent on productive activities.
In this seminar I… Continue reading
Friday, 2 December, 2011 | Alan Knowsley
Courts are taking a tough and expensive approach when injuries occur. Employers have a duty to ensure their staff (and others) are safe in the workplace. A failure to prevent a fall in which an employee suffered a damaged knee and ankle has resulted in the employer being fined $15,000, and ordered to pay $12,000 reparation to the employee.
The company had failed to adequately identify, and then eliminate… Continue reading
Thursday, 1 December, 2011 | Alan Knowsley
In a recent case a nurse breached her contract and was dismissed by her employer, a District Health Board (DHB).
She felt she was unjustifiably dismissed and sought special leave to raise a personal grievance outside the 90 day time limit on the basis that she was not, during that time, in a mental state to consider taking action against the DHB.
To prove her state of mind… Continue reading
Monday, 14 November, 2011 | Andrew Greig
In a recent Employment Relations Authority decision, an employee, who was a CEO of a large company, was awarded $10,000 compensation for hurt and humiliation due to a lack of consultation during a redundancy process.
The Authority held that the actual redundancy was genuine and that the employee’s position was “terminated for genuine commercial reasons.” However, the company failed to adequately consult with the employee before it made a… Continue reading
Tuesday, 8 November, 2011 | Andrew Greig
Dealing with employment disciplinary issues and performance reviews can be stressful for employers and there are steps which must be followed to ensure that you get the process correct. A failure to properly handle the investigation or review may result in a personal grievance claim and that can be expensive as well as the cause of wasted time which would be better spent on productive activities.
In this seminar I… Continue reading
Monday, 26 September, 2011 | Alan Knowsley
At present there are many employers who require their employees to stay overnight as part of their job, asleep, but on duty if needed. These employees were often paid a flat rate for their overnight stay, rather than their usual hourly wage.
In 2007 an IHC support worker took his employer to the Employment Relations Authority, arguing that he should be paid at least the minimum wage for every… Continue reading
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