FAQS
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQs For Employers
What is a personal grievance?
A personal grievance is when an employee brings a formal complaint against their current or former employer.
An employee has 90 days to raise a personal grievance.
Employees can bring a personal grievance for many reasons, including:
- Unjustifiable dismissal (unless the dismissal took place while the employee was on a valid 90-day trial period),
- Discrimination,
- Sexual harassment,
- Age discrimination,
- Racial harassment,
- Bullying, when the employee has raised the issue and not received a response or adequate action,
- Restructuring causing redundancy without the correct process,
- Disadvantage to an employee due to the employment agreement not meeting legal requirements,
- Unfair treatment of an employee who has lawfully refused work.
Faqs For Employees
Am I being bullied? What can I do?
Bullying is:
- Repeated,
- Unreasonable, including humiliating, intimidating, or threatening a person,
- Harassment, discrimination, or violence.
Bullying is not:
- Occasional rudeness or one-off incidents of unreasonable behaviour,
- High performance standards,
- Constructive feedback or advice,
- Requests for extra work to be done, or warning/disciplining workers according to the code of conduct,
- An argument or difference of opinion (if it doesn't become aggressive).
What is a personal grievance?
A personal grievance is when an employee brings a formal complaint against their current or former employer.
An employee has 90 days to raise a personal grievance.
Employees can bring a personal grievance for many reasons, including:
- Unjustifiable dismissal (unless the dismissal took place while the employee was on a valid 90-day trial period)?
- Discrimination?
- Sexual harassment?
- Age discrimination?
- Racial harassment?
- Bullying, when the employee has raised the issue and not received a response or adequate action?
- Restructuring causing redundancy without the correct process?
- Disadvantage to an employee due to the employment agreement not meeting legal requirements?
- Unfair treatment of an employee who has lawfully refused work.
COVID FAQs
Can my employer dismiss me if I refuse to be vaccinated?
See the latest information on vaccines on the Employment New Zealand website.
What do I do if I'm not getting paid properly?
- I'm not getting paid at all?
- I'm not getting paid my usual pay?
- I'm a casual worker. My hours are being cut, so I'm not being paid?
My employer is getting the wage subsidy but not giving it to me, or they are getting the subsidy and only giving me the subsidy not my usual pay.
If your employer doesn't communicate with you and doesn't pay you fairly, you should contact the Early Resolution Service at Employment New Zealand. They are a free service who can help you resolve a workplace issue early, quickly, and informally.
