Employment Court of New Zealand Te Kōti Take Mahi o Aotearoa

[2016] NZEmpC 133 Kamlesh Prasad v LSG Sky Chefs New Zealand Limited (Interlocutory Judgment of Judge Christina Inglis, 26 October 2016) JOINDER – leave granted to issue third party notice – no issue of costs.

[2016] NZEmpC 132 Judith Ann Davidson v Stephen Robert Kelly (Judgment No 6 of Judge B A Corkill, 21 October 2016) COMPLIANCE ORDER – made in terms of parties’ agreement – costs deferred until expiry of compliance period.

[2016] NZEmpC 125 Ladbrook Law Limited v Rabah Bashir (consent Judgment of Judge Christina Inglis, 21 October 2016 CONSENT JUDGMENT – successful resolution of issues – no relief arises.

[2016] NZEmpC 126 Gareth Sands v Serco New Zealand Limited (Interlocutory Judgment of Chief Judge G L Colgan, 17 October 2016) CONFIRMATION OF SETTLEMENT TERMS – consent agreement – plaintiff to deliver defendant’s property to the Court – counsel may inspect documents for trial purposes – defendant to provide summary of documents held to Department of Corrections – costs to be determined at conclusion of substantive hearing.

[2016] NZEmpC 123 Robyn Elizabeth Henderson v Nelson Marlborough District Health Board (Judgment of Judge K G Smith, 30 September 2016) CONSTRUCTIVE DISMISSAL – UNJUSTIFIED DISADVANTAGE – unsuccessful challenge – plaintiff was subject to reasonable performance improvement steps – no evidence of pre-determination or breach of duty by employer leading employee to resign – no grounds for penalty.

[2016] NZEmpC 121 Tait v Robin t/a Silver Birch Holiday Park & Motel (Judgment of Judge M E Perkins, 21 September 2016) REMEDIES – MITIGATION OF LOSS – plaintiff took appropriate steps to mitigate loss – contributory conduct not found – $6,999.92 ordered against defendant – plaintiff entitled to costs.

[2016] NZEmpC 119 Initiative! Un Limited v Mohammad Mahbubur Rahman (Oral Judgment of Judge K G Smith, 15 September 2016) APPLICATION FOR STAY – legal tests applied – stay granted – full amount to be paid to Registrar and held until dispersed by the Court.

[2016] NZEmpC 117 New Zealand Meat Workers and Related Trades Union Incorporated v AFFCO New Zealand Limited (Judgment (No 2) of Judge B A Corkill, 8 September 2016) WAGES – damages at common law – Wages Protection Act 1983 – application of s 11 to unlawful lockouts – re-engagement under collective agreement – unlawful deduction of wages is recoverable – circumstances of individuals to be assessed on a case by case basis – duty to mitigate does not arise.

[2016] NZEmpC 116 Deborah Owen v The Chief Executive of the Department of Corrections (Judgment of Judge Christina Inglis,  5 September 2016) APPLICATION TO EXTEND TIME TO FILE CHALLENGE – principles considered – minor delay – leave granted.

[2016] NZEmpC 113 The Pulp and Paper Industry Council of the Manufacturing and Construction Workers Union v Oji Fibre Solutions (NZ) Ltd (Formerly Carter Holt Harvey Pulp and Paper Ltd) (Judgment of Judge M E Perkins, 31 August 2016) CONTRACT INTERPRETATION – STATUTORY INTERPRETATION – calculation of leave entitlements – relevant daily pay – payment of public holidays occurring within period of leave – costs reserved.

[2016] NZEmpC 111 Maritime Union of New Zealand Inc v The China Navigation Company Pte Limited (Reasons for Judgment of Chief Judge G L Colgan, 29 August 2016) COLLECTIVE BARGAINING – LOCKOUT – offers of employment not on a take-it-or-leave-it basis – s 63A(2) complied with – s 82 definition of employee and employer includes prospective employees and employers –  s 82(1)(a)(iv) precondition not met – offer of employment on individual employment agreement does not constitute a lockout – two or more employees necessary for an effective collective agreement – two or more employees not necessary for initiation of collective bargaining – offer of employment transfer does not constitute current employee – collective bargaining initiated lawfully.

[2016] NZEmpC 109 Dotcom v Orduna (Interlocutory Judgment of Chief Judge G L Colgan, 26 August 2016) DISCLOSURE – application for disclosure of other staff employment agreements too wide – other staff time and wage records relevant – disclosure of documents considered relevant business records not oppressive – objection to production by reference to Privacy Act ill-founded – financial documents irrelevant – PAYE records relevant – disclosure of job descriptions ordered – disclosure of wage and time records ordered – disclosure of PAYE documents ordered.