Can I take back my resignation  Resignation is a unilateral act of termination by an employee and does not require an employer’s agreement. Unlike a dismissal, a resignation does not need to be justified and can be made for unreasonable or rash reasons. Sometimes resignations occur in stressful circumstances when emotions are running high, are…read more >

West v Kowhai School illustration of the difference between advice from a Lawyer compared to a non-Lawyer Most people appreciate that when discussing a confidential matter with a Lawyer, their communications are protected by the concept of legal privilege and do not need to be disclosed to anybody. In the current employment law landscape, much…read more >

Is “no jab, no job” as simple as it sounds? The phrase “no jab, no job” has been doing the rounds of late – especially this week in medical and education circles following the government’s announcement on Monday that they are mandating vaccines for staff in those professions (although at the time of writing the details…read more >

Regulating incentives under the Financial Markets Conduct Act – Is this the end of commission incentives in financial markets The Financial Markets (Conduct of Institutions) Amendment Bill (the “Bill”) is currently working its way through Parliament. The purpose of the Bill (among other things) is to address an issue in financial markets where remuneration like…read more >

‘Take Advice’ on Employment Law Situations The interests of employees and employers are sometimes not aligned. This misalignment is most apparent when an employer is considering terminating an employee’s employment. One step a fair employer will take prior to dismissal is to remind the employee of their right to take legal advice. But what happens…read more >

Redundancy is complicated, not a quick fix.  How an employer chooses to run its business – the structure – can be complicated. When an employer decides to change how it does things and the employment of staff could be affected as a result, a redundancy situation might arise.  The case of Caddy v Vice Chancellor, University of Auckland shows just how involved the redundancy process…read more >

What is ‘fair and reasonable’ under s 103A. If you’re in the employment sphere, or have ever had an employment dispute, no doubt you will have heard the words “fair and reasonable” bandied about a fair bit. But what does this really mean? This is a reference to S103A of the Employment Relations Act, which…read more >

Working while on annual leave: Are you really on holiday?   Technology has changed the relationship many employees have with their work. Instead of work being left at the office, emails and phone calls can follow us anywhere- even on holiday. This raises the question, if an employee continues responding to emails while on leave, are they on holiday or are they at work?  In Wanaka Pharmacy Ltd…read more >

When the work conversation turns pear shaped Concrete Structures NZ Limited v Rottier  Mr Rottier signed a new contract with his employer and started work around 10:30am on 6 May 2019 – a few hours later his employment was over.  In summary, while working Mr Rottier’s Manager (Mr Henderson) approached Mr Rottier and accused him of letting subcontractors on site without signing in – he denied this, and was accused…read more >

Interim reinstatement: Do colleagues’ opinions matter? In a previous blog post, we have discussed interim reinstatement and the four-stage test that must be used in determining whether it will be granted. To recap, the four stages are:  Does the applicant have an arguable case for unjustified dismissal?  Does the applicant have an arguable case for reinstatement…read more >