Restrictions OK
Jurisdiction Employment Relations Authority - Auckland
Reference No AA 157/05
Hearing date 22 Feb 2005
Determination date 02 May 2005
Member M Urlich
Representation K Kaur ; L Campbell
Location Auckland
Parties McMillan v Inter Pacific Logistics Ltd
Summary UNJUSTIFIED DISMISSAL - Redundancy - No written employment agreement - Genuine redundancy - Procedural unfairness - Applicant given leave to consider alternatives to making her position redundant - Upon return to work respondent's director was working at applicant's desk - Reasonable for applicant to feel redundancy was pre-determined - Respondent failed to adequately respond to issues raised by applicant - Applicant received four weeks' pay in lieu of notice - Consultation over whether applicant should work out notice period would have been fair and reasonable - Dismissal procedurally unjustified - PRACTICE AND PROCEDURE - Identity of respondent - Respondent ceased trading - New company incorporated seven months after dismissal - Applicant alleged new company incorporated for purpose of escaping creditor liability - No reasonable basis upon which to substitute new company for respondent - GOOD FAITH - Amendments to s4(4) Employment Relations Act 2004 applied only to employment relationship problems arising after 1 December 2004 - Poor handling of situation did not vitiate respondent's selection process - Neither did employment of someone in similar role to applicant's three months after redundancy breach good faith obligations - Export supervisor
Result Application granted ; Compensation for humiliation etc ($3,000) ; Costs reserved
Statutes ERA s4(4);ERA s4(4)(d);ERA s4(4)(e)
Number of Pages 4
PDF File Link: aa 157_05.pdf [pdf 24 KB]