Return to All News
27 Sep 2024

Employment Law Made Simple: Key Insights from Everest People’s Employment Express

Every quarter, we invite our clients to an information-packed event, Employment Express. Employment Express is a great way for our clients to get the latest updates on legislation and network with industry professionals. As a valued client of Everest People, you will unlock exclusive access to free knowledge events, webinars and networking opportunities, to drive your success and empower business growth.

The agenda certainly sparked interest, with a full house of 90 attendees and a waitlist of 25. We may need to book a larger room next time!

The hour-and-a-half session kicked off with a warm introduction from Everest People’s Managing Director, Senga Allen, who just celebrated 10 years on the Waikato Chamber of Commerce Board. The room erupted with applause to congratulate Senga on her efforts. Senga then invited Vicki Campbell from Equilibrium Legal to the floor, who dove into the following topics:

For someone who doesn’t have professional qualifications in Employment Law and Human Resources, the above topics might seem daunting. What I love about Employment Express is that it’s delivered in a way that someone like me – a Recruitment Partner with 5 years of experience and no formal HR training – can understand. Often, people believe that Recruiters can give Employment Law or even Immigration advice, but unless we are qualified, this is not the case!

So, here are my key takeaways:

  1. What is classified as ‘long-term’ when we think about long-term absences? ‘Long-term’ typically means longer than 1 to 2 months. The process itself will take a couple of months, so the actual absences will likely be as long, if not longer.
  2. Acting in good faith as an employer means that while investigating ‘long-term absences,’ it’s best to keep your employee on full pay AND stay in contact with them. Don’t forget about them!
  3. Doctors are not actually required to disclose a diagnosis unless it directly affects the workplace.
  4. ‘Stress’ is not a diagnosis!
  5. When restructuring, the first thing you should do is READ your employment agreement. If you don’t know what’s in there, how can you respond when employees raise questions or concerns?
  6. DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT, DOCUMENT. Write everything down, and document every conversation.
  7. Be prepared to change your timeline during a consultation process for a restructure. Your team may provide great ideas about other ways to save costs. You need to be open to feedback and adjust the proposal and timeline accordingly.
  8. Include an organisational chart in your restructure proposal. A visual will help your team understand the proposed changes.
  9. A restructure is always about the JOB, not the PERSON. You cannot restructure just because you want to get rid of someone. You are disestablishing a role, not a human being.
  10. Every employment relationship comes with an obligation of confidentiality. This applies to both the employer AND the employee. You should provide your employees with a copy of the proposed restructure so they can seek legal advice.

Please reach out to one of our People and Culture Specialists if you need advice on Restructures, Investigations, HR Audits, or Mediation and Conflict Resolution.

 

Rachel Knox | Recruitment Partner