Legislative Requirements

Employment Relations Act 2000

Purpose of the Act:

• To build productive employment relationships through the promotion of good faith in all aspects of the employment environment and of the employment relationships by:
  • Recognising that employment relationships are built on mutual trust and confidence and also on a legislative requirement for good faith behaviour
  • Acknowledging and addressing the inherent inequality of power in employment relationships
  • Promoting collective bargaining
  • Protecting the integrity of individual choice
  • Promoting mediation as the primary problem-solving mechanism
  • Reducing the need for judicial intervention
• To promote the effective enforcement of employment standards
• To promote observance in New Zealand of the principles of the International Labour Organisation Convention 87 on Freedom of Association, and Convention 98 on the Right to Organise and Bargain Collectively

Key Parts of this Act cover:

Part 1 – Good faith employment relations and employer’s obligation to keep records pertaining to the provision of minimum entitlements

Part 3 – Freedom of Association, including voluntary membership of a union, prohibition of preference pertaining to the membership or otherwise of a union or the exertion of undue influence based on membership or otherwise of a union.

Part 4 – Recognition and operation of unions, which covers the operation of unions

Part 5 – Collective bargaining

Part 6 – Individual employees’ terms and conditions of employment, which includes employment agreements and bargaining and

• Flexible working (Subparts 6AA and 6AB)
• Employment affected by restructuring (Subpart 6A)
• Bargaining fees (Subpart 6B)
• Breastfeeding facilities and breaks (Subpart 6C)
• Rest breaks and meal breaks (Subpart 6D)

Part 7 – Employment relations education leave, which may provide paid leave to certain employees to further their knowledge about industrial relations with the aim of improving relations between unions, employees and employers and promoting the duty of good faith.

Part 8 – Strikes and lockouts

Part 9 – Personal grievances, disputes and enforcement, covering dispute resolution between employers and employees

Activity

Privacy Act 2020

Purpose of the Act:

• The Privacy Act 2020 covers how information is collected, stored, used and shared by businesses and organisations.
• To promote and protect individual privacy by
  • Providing a framework for protecting an individual’s right to privacy or personal information, including the right of an individual access to their personal information
    • Giving effect to internationally recognised privacy obligations and standards in relation to the privacy of personal information, including the OECD Guidelines and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights
• Ensure every person knows when information about them is being collected
• Ensure information is used and shared appropriately
• Ensure information is kept safe and secure
• Ensure every person is able to access their information

Principles of the Privacy Act

Principle 1: Purpose for collection
Principle 2: Source of information – collection from the individual
Principle 3: What to tell the individual about collection
Principle 4: Manner of collection
Principle 5: Storage and security of collection
Principle 6: Providing people access to their information
Principle 7: Correction of personal information
Principle 8: Ensure accuracy before using information
Principle 9: Limits on retention of personal information
Principle 10: Use of personal information
Principle 11: Disclosing personal information
Principle 12: Disclosure outside New Zealand
Principle 13: Unique identifiers

Activity:

Health and Safety at Work Act 2015

Purpose of the Act

• To provide a balanced framework to secure the health and safety of workers and workplaces by:
  • Protecting workers and other persons by eliminating or minimising risks arising from work or from high-risk machinery
  • Providing fair workplace representation, consultation, cooperation and resolution of issues related to work health and safety
  • Encouraging unions and employer organisations to take a constructive role in promoting improvements in work and health safety practices and assisting PCBUs (persons conducting a business or undertaking) and workers to achieve a healthier and safer working environment
  • Promoting the provision of advice, information, education and training in relation to work health and safety
  • securing compliance with this Act through effective and appropriate compliance and enforcement measures
  • ensuring appropriate scrutiny and review of actions taken by persons performing functions or exercising powers under this Act
  • providing a framework for continuous improvement and progressively higher standards of work health and safety.
• Regard must be had to the principle that workers and other persons should be given the highest level of protection against harm to their health, safety and welfare from hazards and risks associated with work or from specified types of plant and machinery as is reasonably practicable.

Key Parts of the Act cover:

Part 1: Health and safety at work: covers the application of the act in different types of workplace
Part 2: Health and safety duties: covers who has duties relating to health and safety at work
Part 3: Worker engagement, participation and representation: covers how workers are involved in the provision of health and safety practices in the workplace
Part 4: Enforcement and other matters
Part 5: Miscellaneous provisions, including the role of WorkSafe and other agencies

Activity:

Human Rights Act 1993

Key provisions of the Act include:

• The Act is aimed at giving all people equal opportunities and preventing unfair treatment based on the basis of irrelevant personal characteristics. It covers discrimination on the grounds of:
  • Sex
  • Marital status
  • Religious belief
  • Ethical belief
  • Colour
  • Race
  • Ethnic or national origins
  • Disability
  • Age
  • Political opinion
  • Employment status
  • Family status
  • Sexual orientation
• It is unlawful to discriminate against someone on these grounds in the following areas of public life:
  • Employment
  • Education
  • Access to public places
  • Provision of goods and services
  • Housing and accommodation

Activity:

Anti-discrimination and harassment policies and legislation

In any workplace, discrimination and harassment are not tolerated. Workers should be treated fairly and should be given equal opportunities in the workplace.

Most workplaces include anti-discrimination policies, and it is important to be aware of what they include.

Unlawful workplace discrimination can occur when choosing who to employ or promote. Discrimination can also occur by favouring one employee over another on the basis of race, colour, sex, sexual orientation, age, disability, marital status, carer responsibilities, pregnancy, religion, political opinion or national origin.

These videos will help to explain what is considered discrimination and harassment in the workplace.

What is the problem?

Watch these YouTube videos to find out more about the issue of discrimination, harassment and bullying in the workplace.

Watch

“We need to act urgently”: Report finds bullying and harassment prevalent in the workplace.

A report by the Human Rights Commission has found bullying and harassment in the workplace is prevalent, and it's affecting young women, minorities and the rainbow community. The Equal Employment Opportunities Commissioner says the problem is widespread, and workplaces are failing people.

Duration: 2.08

Questions

Pre-Watch Question: Have you had any experience of workplace bullying or harassment?

Post-Watch Task: Reflect on your workplace experiences in light of this video.

Watch

How to tell if you’re being bullied at work?

What does bullying at work look like? Examples of people describing their experiences of workplace bullying.

Duration: 6.08

Questions

Pre-Watch Question: What do you think the terms bullying and harassment mean in a workplace?

Post-Watch Task: Reflect on your workplace experiences in light of this video.

Watch

“NZLS: Rules against bullying, harassment and discrimination in the legal profession”

What the New Zealand Law Society is doing to combat workplace bullying, harassment and discrimination.

Duration: all

Questions

Pre-Watch Question: What are your workplace’s policies regarding instances of bullying, harassment or discrimination?

Post-Watch Question: Can your workplace do anything more to prevent this type of behaviour?

Employees who engage in discrimination and harassment against colleagues have an adverse effect on their:

• Personal health: mental, emotional, psychological, physical
• Social interaction and behaviour: social avoidance, isolation, fear, and distrust
• Work performance: lack of motivation, poor concentration, and lower productivity

Discrimination and harassment in the workplace are also illegal and punishable under the legislation and legal requirements of industrial relations. Therefore, you and your management are responsible for ensuring these things are not practised in the workplace. Thus, you should employ proactive measures that prevent them from taking place and processes that will help the aggravated parties in case they occur in the workplace.

Create workplace discrimination and harassment policies

Your organisation or project should create policies that lay out the guidelines for avoiding discrimination and harassment and their indicators so that those in the workplace can identify if someone is being discriminated against or harassed. The policies should also have procedures for reporting discrimination and harassment in the workplace and the sanctions when proven true.

Raise awareness on workplace discrimination and harassment

This measure helps sensitise your workers that discrimination and harassment can happen if they are not aware of them. You can build awareness by providing interactive seminars on workplace discrimination and harassment. If applicable, you can also provide training to appropriate personnel, such as human resources and health and safety officers. You may also send regular e-mails and display posters on the topic to help cement their awareness.

Practise good workplace relationship and communication

Become a model for a safe and productive workplace by practising fair and equal treatment when working. When working at least at a supervisory level position, allow all your workers to grow. See the potential in all of your workers. to help you not discriminate against others. Call out those who may show signs of harassing others. Make them part of your meetings to ensure that no one is being harassed or discriminated against or, if someone is, the incident is raised, reported, and actioned upon.

Take incidents of discrimination and harassment seriously

You and your management should consider these incidents as a significant matter. Make sure that no case is neglected and all cases are given attention. Remember, management is accountable for the employees' and workers’ actions and is, therefore, liable for any incidents. Thus, you should handle incidents carefully to ensure it is resolved, both for the organisation’s and its workers’ sake.

These measures are proactive, meaning they are actively applied and done to prevent discrimination and harassment in the workplace rather than just responding to the incident after it has occurred. This way, the workplace can become a safe and productive environment for all those under the project.