From time to time we come across a situation where one party to a settlement agreement fails to sign the agreement in writing, and/or tries to change the terms after an agreement has been reached.  When this happens, we’re often asked whether or not the verbal agreement is binding and enforceable.  Well in the case of Nand v Richmond NZ Trust Limited [2012] NZERA Auckland 384, the Authority Member examined this very situation.

Arguments can arise between an employer and employee over who owns property (intellectual or physical) developed by the employee. In Empress Abalone Ltd v Langdon [2000] 2 ERNZ 53 (CA), the Court of Appeal considered whether an invention was made in the course of employment and therefore owned by the employer. The employer in that case asserted that, because Mr Langdon had been employed to conduct research, all research Mr Langdon conducted had therefore to fall within the ambit of his employment and be the property of the employer. The Court disagreed. At [8] Keith J said:

When an employee works variable hours, there are many implications an employer needs to take into consideration.  Some of the most common implications are summarised in the article below.

Question: Is it legal for an employee under a individual employment agreement to work variable hours per week?

Any investigation of misconduct by an employee must be carried out with care. The employer must act in a fair and reasonable manner. In Brocks v Prime Range Meats Ltd [2012] NZERA Christchurch 229 the Employment Relations Authority held that an employer who insisted that an employee whose conduct was being investigated should take annual leave had acted unjustifiably. It said a fair and reasonable employer in all the circumstances would have suspended the employee on full pay.

In accordance with section 114 of the Employment Relations Act, every employee who wishes to raise a personal grievance must raise the grievance with his or her employer within the period of 90 days beginning with the date on which the action alleged to amount to a personal grievance occurred or came to the notice of the employee, whichever is the later, unless the employer consents to the personal grievance being raised after the expiration of that period.

Volunteers are expressly excluded from the definition of “employee” by s 6 of the Employment Relations Act 2000. A volunteer worker is not an “employee” because some form of hire or reward must be present. However, if a worker is working as a “volunteer” in order to get a job then the worker falls within the definition of “employee” because he or she is a person intending to work. If the volunteer is in reality an employee then he or she is entitled to bring a grievance for an unjustified dismissal.

For the pay period beginning 1 April 2013 or after, there are some important payroll changes employers need to be aware of. These changes are summarised below:

Employees of the Bay of Plenty District Health Board claimed they have not been provided with a meal or rest break in accordance with sections 69ZD and 69ZE of the Employment Relations Act 2000 and applied to the Employment Relations Authority for the imposition of a penalty on the employer for breach of the Act.

Compensation for the loss of the benefit of an employer’s contribution to an employee’s KiwiSaver account can be claimed but the Employment Relations Authority does not have jurisdiction to order an employer to make KiwiSaver contributions to an employee’s fund. That being the case, when an employer fails to make the required KiwiSaver contribution, employees should bring a personal grievance against the employer and claim a remedy for loss of a benefit rather than ask the Authority to order the employer to make the payment.