| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Christchurch |
| Reference No | [2012] NZERA Christchurch 70 |
| Hearing date | 22 Nov 2011 |
| Determination date | 18 April 2012 |
| Member | P Cheyne |
| Representation | M Saunders ; J SMith |
| Location | Christchurch |
| Parties | Wilson v Drinnan Engineering Ltd & Anor |
| Other Parties | FAAC NZ Ltd (Formerly Automatic Gates New Zealand Ltd) |
| Summary | PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE – Application to join second respondent (“F”) to proceedings - Applicant claimed under first respondent (“D”) instruction and paid by D but worked for F – Applicant claimed D and F operations intertwined and risk D would claim no assets to pay any award ordered by Authority – D claimed was sole employer – D’s managing director (“G”) also F’s sole director – Parties agreed applicant only paid by D, D deducted PAYE and dealt with all other employment matters – Parties’ employment agreement (“EA”) stated D applicant’s employer and no reference to F – Unsigned EA created six years later stating D and F applicant’s employer (“second EA”) – Applicant claimed second EA drafted at G’s request – G denied spoke to applicant about second EA – Authority found G forgot about applicant giving G second EA previously – Applicant claimed spent almost half time on work for F after general manager left – Found applicant spend majority of time on work for D unrelated to F – Found as F did not have any employees D used D employees to attend to F’s work where was demand but D treated F as external client – Applicant claimed evidence that second EA current EA between parties – Applicant claimed F paid applicant’s wages when D’s work “slow” – Found F’s accounts showed F had not made any wage payments – Found parties did not have discussion about second EA and long standing employment relationship between applicant and D – Found no express or implied agreement that applicant employed by F – Found no grounds for lifting corporate veil - Found F should not be joined as party – Application dismissed - Workshop Manager |
| Result | Application dismissed ; Costs reserved |
| Main Category | Practice & Procedure |
| Statutes | ERA s6 |
| Cases Cited | Orakei Group (2007) Ltd v Doherty [2008] ERNZ 345 |
| Number of Pages | 8 |
| PDF File Link: | 2012_NZERA_Christchurch_70.pdf [pdf 37 KB] |