Business

Shaking handsCareers: Your rights at work

Having a good understanding of your employment rights at work can give you the knowledge and confidence to make sure you have a fair and balanced working relationship with your employer. Whether you’re starting a new job, are facing changes to your job or conditions, or need to renegotiate parts of your current contract, being sure of your rights and entitlements can help you to feel more in control of your situation.

Your rights and entitlements at work are fixed by:

  1. NZ law which sets out minimum rights and entitlements
  2. Your employment agreement (contract)

Under the law, every employee in New Zealand employed after 2 October 2000 must have a written employment agreement, either individual or collective. Some provisions must be included in agreements by law, but a number of minimum conditions must be met regardless of whether they are included in agreements. These minimum conditions are:

Minimum wage

For people 18 or over, the before tax minimum wage is currently $11.25 an hour - $90 for an eight hour day, or $450 for a 40-hour week.

Sixteen- and 17-year-olds are entitled to 80 per cent of the adult wage, or $9 per hour. The youth wage also applies to people aged 16 and 17 years who are undertaking recognised industry training involving at least 60 credits a year.

Increase in 2008

The Government announced in December that the minimum wage will increase to $12 per hour in April 2008. The youth minimum wage will be replaced by a 'new entrants' rate of $9.60 per hour, staying at 80 per cent of the adult rate.

The new entrants rate can be paid to 16- and 17- year-olds for the first 200 hours or three months of employment, then the adult minimum wage applies.

There is no statutory minimum wage for employees who are under 16 years old.

These rates apply regardless of the number of hours worked each week. There are some exceptions. The Minimum Wages Act 1983 sets out minimum wage entitlements, which are reviewed annually.

Union membership

Every NZ employee has a right to decide whether to join a union and, if so, which union. It is illegal for your employer (or anyone else) to put unreasonable pressure on you to join or to not join a union, or to discriminate against you because of your decision.

Paid leave

Under the law, all NZ employees are entitled to a minimum of four weeks' paid annual holidays (effective 1 April 2007) on completion of each year of employment. If you work for less than a year, you’re still entitled to holiday pay at a rate of 6% of your gross earnings. The Holidays Act 2003 and its 2004 Amendment set minimum leave entitlements.

Public holidays

You are also entitled to 11 paid public holidays if they fall on days they would normally work. An employment agreement can provide for alternative days, but not for less than 11 paid public holidays where these would otherwise be working days.

Sick leave

After six months of continuous employment, you are entitled to a minimum of five days' paid sick leave during the next 12 months of employment. Sick leave can be taken for yourself or to care for your spouse, dependent child or parent. Unused sick leave can accumulate up to a minimum of 20 days.

Bereavement leave

After six months of continuous employment, you are entitled to a minimum of three days’ paid bereavement leave on the death of a spouse, parent, child, sibling, grandparent, grandchild or the spouse’s parent; and a minimum of one day if your employer accepts that you have suffered any other bereavement.

Payment of wages

Your employer generally needs to get your written consent to make deductions from your pay, or to pay your wages in a form other than cash, unless your employment agreement allows it. The Wages Protection Act 1983 gives you this right.

Equal pay and equal rights

NZ employers cannot offer different pay rates for the same job solely on the basis of gender. Your employer cannot also usually discriminate in hiring or firing, training or promoting because of anyone’s race, colour, national or ethnic origin, gender or sexual orientation, marital or family status, employment status, age, religious belief or political opinion, or if they have a disability. The Equal Pay Act 1972 and the Human Rights Act 1993 give you these rights.

Parental leave

An employee and their partner can apply for parental leave either on the birth of a child, or the adoption of a child under 5. They may also be entitled to up to 14 weeks paid parental leave, which is taxpayer-funded. It is illegal for an employer to either dismiss or discriminate against an employee on grounds of pregnancy or for taking parental leave under the Parental Leave & Employment Protection Act 1987, which sets out these rights.

Other leave rights

You may also be entitled to other rights in some situations. For example, if you’re injured as a result of an accident at work or somewhere else, you may be entitled to ACC accident compensation. Employees called for jury service are entitled to paid leave, and those who do full-time voluntary training in the armed forces may be entitled to unpaid leave.

Employment help and advice

If you’re faced with a problem at work, what should you do?

Firstly, try to address the issue with your employer. If you believe you have a personal grievance, you must raise it with your employer within 90 days of the action or becoming aware of it, whichever is later. Before you talk, think carefully about what your concern is and make you have your facts straight and aren’t misunderstanding the situation.

If you’re unable to resolve the situation, talk to your union representative if you’re a union member and/or call the Department of Labour’s Employment Relations Infoline on 0800 20 90 20 for advice. The Citizens Advice Bureaux can also provide useful advice, and in cases of discrimination, so can the Human Rights Commission.

If you think your employer has breached any employment law, you can ask a government Labour Inspector to investigate the matter on your behalf. You can also take your case to the Employment Relations Authority and if you’re still not satisfied, the Employment Relations Court.

We recommend: employment resources

Christchurch City Libraries has plenty of useful resources to help you at work:

We also recommend the following web sites:

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