Employee entitled to be paid for minimum of 40 hours per week under contract…

The Employment Relations Authority has ordered an employer to pay an employee for 64.75 hours of work that he was willing and able to work but not rostered on.  

The employee was employed by the employer full-time. His contract provided that he would work a minimum of 40 hours per week.

There were multiple weeks that the employer was not rostered for a minimum of 40 hours. He was also not paid for the 40 hours provided under his contract.

The employee brought a claim to the Authority for the unpaid wages.

The Authority had to consider what was intended under the employment contract between the employer and employee.

The employer argued that it had not promised to provide the employee with at least 40 hours per week, nor guaranteed to pay the employee for that time. Rather, hours were scheduled on a roster each week and employees were paid accordingly.

The Authority considered the wording of the contract. It found that the contract had to be interpreted objectively, given the wording of the contract and what a reasonable person in the shoes of the employee/employer would consider the words to mean.

The contract provided that the employee agreed to “work a minimum of 40 hours per week” and that those hours may change in accordance with the scheduled roster.

The Authority considered that the ordinary and natural meaning of those words did not contemplate the employee working for less than 40 hours per week. The timing of hours may change, but a minimum of 40 hours was guaranteed.

The employer argued that the words allowing the employee’s hours to be changed according to the roster meant that the employee could work less than 40 hours. However, if that were the case, the employee could have been offered 10 hours or zero hours of work.

The Authority concluded that if that were accepted, including the provision regarding 40 hours per week was pointless. Therefore, the employee was guaranteed a minimum of 40 hours per week.

The Authority further considered that the employer was obligated to pay the employee for the hours guaranteed under the contract if they were ready, willing and able to work them. In this case, the employee had been able to work the minimum of 40 hours per week.

The employer was ordered to pay $1,720 to the employee for the 64.75 hours not paid during his employment, $71.55 for reimbursement of a filing fee and interest on the unpaid wages.

This case is a reminder to ensure that you understand your employment contract. If you are confused about your legal rights, it pays to seek advice from a professional with experience in the area.

Leading law firms committed to helping clients cost-effectively will have a range of fixed-price Initial Consultations to suit most people’s needs in quickly learning what their options are.  At Rainey Collins we have an experienced team who can answer your questions and put you on the right track.