From 13 June 2023 the timeframe to raise a personal grievance related to sexual harassment changes from 90 days to 12 months Coming forward to report sexual harassment events can be difficult. It’s common for victims of such events to wait a long time before coming forward, if at all. The change of timeframe aims to improve the personal grievance process for victims of sexual harassment which has occurred in their employment by allowing them more time to consider what happened before deciding to come forward. The new timeframe applies to sexual harassment events that happened, or came to the ..read more

On 1 April 2023 minimum wage increases to $22.70 per hour. Think this doesn’t apply to your business? Let’s double check… Adult rates (16 years and over) minimum rates will be increased to $22.70 per hour. ‘Starting-out’ & ‘Training’ minimum rates will be increased to $18.16 per hour. From 1 April 2023, minimum salary per annum for a 40 hour week is $47,216 (this is using the calculation of hourly rate x 40 hours x 52 weeks). If you currently have people being paid a salary around this amount, it will need to be reviewed before the changes take effect. It’s important that you also ..read more

On 24 July 2021, sick leave entitlement increases from 5 to 10 days. What are the changes, and what does your business need to do to ensure it’s ready for this change? The changes New employees employed on or after 24 July 2021 will receive 10 days of sick leave after 6 months of continuous employment. Current employees will receive 10 days of sick leave upon reaching their next sick leave entitlement anniversary after 24 July 2021. Unused sick leave remains the same; it can be carried over up to a maximum entitlement of 20 days per annum. What your business needs to do There’s a few ..read more

In June 2020, a decision was made about the way workplace investigations are carried out. From this decision, a key change has been applied. Workplace investigators must hold a licence The Private Security Personnel Licensing Authority (PSPLA) made a decision that those who carry out workplace investigations are required to hold a private investigator licence, or be regulated under another Act. Workplace investigations were not a focus when the Private Security Personnel and Private Investigators Act 2010 was passed, however the PSPLA noted workplace investigations are “a relatively recent fe ..read more

On 1 December, the Privacy Act 2020 (the Act) will replace the Privacy Act 1993. The world has come a long way since the 90s; technology in particular has created a need for changing how we deal with privacy.  All organisations collect information about people they work with – from staff, to suppliers, customers, and clients. New privacy laws may affect how your organisation collects, handles and uses personal information about these people.   The Act won’t differentiate between a large company with several hundred staff, or a small local business with a few staff – it will apply if ..read more

In the Weekend NZ Herald, 4 July 2020, HR Associate provided advice for businesses who may need to go through a restructure due to Covid-19, and subsequently make jobs redundant. If you didn’t get a chance to read this article, we’ve provided an overview of the key points below: Proposal timing While there is no defined time frame for consultation under employment law (it’s all about being fair and reasonable) we recommend 7 days minimum as good practice. For example, you might present the proposal on a Tuesday, and close consultation the following Tuesday. Allow people time over a weeken ..read more

On 1 April 2020 the Government will increase the minimum wage to $18.90 per hour. Now’s a good time to make sure your business is ready for this change. Think this doesn’t apply to your business? Let’s double check… Adult rates (16 years and over) minimum rates will be increased to $18.90 per hour (currently it’s $17.70). ‘Starting-out’ & ‘Training’ minimum rates will be increased to $15.12 per hour (currently it’s $14.16). Under legislation employees must be paid at least the minimum hourly wage rate for every hour worked, including salaried workers. What does that actually ..read more

Staff not performing? Constantly calling in sick? These frustrations can cause business managers and owners to want to take drastic action, but there is a better way. Staff issues can be a frustrating and time consuming part of running a business, particularly when you have so many other things to do and sort out. Check out our tips, which are focused on saving you time, money, stress, and getting the outcomes you want. 1. Deal with issues as soon as they start We often hear that an employee hasn’t been doing their job for the past 3+ months, and managers want them out. If the issue hasn’t b ..read more

A number of NZ employment legislative changes have recently occurred, and other changes are just around the corner. Businesses should prepare for these changes now by: updating employment contract templates implementing new or revised company policies (i.e. meal and rest breaks) communicating to staff creating variations for current staff (if required) Failure to comply can affect staff morale and/or attract hefty fines and penalties! Please get in touch with us if you need help. What are the key changes effective 6 May 2019? For many NZ businesses, the two key changes will relate t ..read more

The Employment Relations Amendment Bill 2018 has been delayed. Some changes have already come into effect, with other changes now scheduled to come into effect on 6 May 2019. So what does this mean? Background: This Bill was introduced to Parliament in January 2018; had its first reading in February; and sent to the Select Committee, with a report due date of 1 August. However, this report was delayed, and published over a month later. This now means a delay to when some expected changes will come into effect. What is the Employment Relations Amendment Bill? The Government has advised that “th ..read more