The Employment Relations Authority has rejected a claim from a school teacher that the School Board of Trustees breached a confidential mediated settlement agreement by making a mandatory report to the Education Council (now the Teaching Council).

The ERA held that the requirement to report to the Education Council could not be overridden by the agreement to keep the settlement agreement confidential because confidentiality only went so far as the law allows. A mandatory reporting requirement is a legal requirement and a failure to report would be an offence.  Therefore the Board was required to make a report to the Education Council and was not in breach of the agreement of confidentiality.

Alan Knowsley

Employment & Education Lawyer
Wellington