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Concerns raised over personal grievance changes

Concerns have been raised over the possibility of workers being stripped of rights under changes to personal grievance rules.Employees can take personal grievance cases to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) when they think they have been treated unf

NZPA
Wed, 03 Mar 2010

Concerns have been raised over the possibility of workers being stripped of rights under changes to personal grievance rules.

Employees can take personal grievance cases to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) when they think they have been treated unfairly but the Government has concerns about how the system has been working.

The Government will consider ideas in a Labour Department discussion paper out yesterday which included extending out the 90-day probation period for workers at small companies and applying it to companies with up to 50 workers instead of 20 workers; changing the rules around when it is fair to sack workers; setting a period of time a worker had to be at a company before they could make a complaint, and measures, including regulation, to ensure better standards of employment advocates.

Submissions close at the end of this month and Employment Minister Kate Wilkinson told NZPA she intended introducing legislation to make changes around May-June.

Employment lawyer Peter Cullen said he was concerned by the idea of setting a period of time where workers could not take a case against their boss, separate from probation.

"Why should people lose their rights," he said on Radio New Zealand.

Mr Cullen was also unhappy with a suggestion management should be excluded.

"I don't see why you shouldn't have rights simply because you are a manager."

He was not disturbed by the proposals around extending the 90-day probation period longer and to bigger companies -- however the Labour and Green Parties were against it.

A year ago on Monday the Government's law bringing in the 90-day probation period for companies with fewer than 20 workers came into effect.

Labour MP Trevor Mallard questioned what research had been done on how many people had been sacked during that period.

Green Party MP Keith Locke said options in the paper would weaken workers' access to justice while the 90-day option was different to the Government's pre-election promise.

Mrs Wilkinson said officials had been looking at how the probation period policy was working.

"From what I hear it's working well but if there are any crinkles in it we need to know what they are before we make any further decisions about it. So that work should be on my desk shortly and I will certainly have a look at it and put it in the mix."

Mrs Wilkinson said the Government would ensure a fair balance between workers' and employers' rights.

The paper raised the idea of changing the rule around the test of justification before someone loses their job, which is set out in employment law.

Under a 2004 change to the Employment Relations Act a decision whether a sacking was justified had to be determined by considering whether the employer had been fair and reasonable. The discussion paper seeks comment on what would be a better test and says the bias is currently in favour of workers.

Mr Mallard said he wanted to know if the change would be technical or have a real effect.

"I think most Kiwis think that workers should have a fair go and I think most people think the balance is about fair at the moment and to make it easier to fire people and not give them a fair go is something I certainly would object to."

The paper considered options to regulate costs and remedies available in the authority, remove reinstatement as the primary remedy, provide non-monetary remedies -- for example offering training -- and increase financial penalties.

Mr Mallard said some changes may be positive but some processes were there for good reason. He said the use of warning letters ensured both sides knew where they stood, for example.

NZPA
Wed, 03 Mar 2010
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Concerns raised over personal grievance changes
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