Restrictions OK
Jurisdiction Employment Relations Authority - Wellington
Reference No WA 82/01
Determination date 15 November 2001
Member D Asher
Representation M Quigg & S Heywood ; S O'Sullivan & D Blackett
Location Wellington
Parties Farmers Mutual Group Staff Association v Farmers Mutual Insurance Association
Summary COMPLIANCE ORDER - Orders sought that new positions in respondent company within Collective Employment Agreement's coverage provision and that direct bargaining with employees for Individual Employment Agreements unlawful - Agreement reached between parties on new CEA before restructuring completed - Agreement that middle management excluded from CEA coverage clause - Reassured that area managers not middle management - 3 weeks after agreement area management positions restructured into new positions - New positions regarded as middle management by respondent - Respondent bargained IEAs for new positions directly with employees - Contractual interpretation - No express definition of middle management - Meaning found in recent conduct of parties and application of objectives of ERA - Area management positions and new positions substantially similar - Failure to meet contractual obligations breach of good faith - Order that respondent apply both provisions of CEA and terms in IEAs which were not inconsistent with CEA - Order that respondent not to bargain directly with employees covered by CEA
Result Application granted ; Compliance orders granted ; Costs reserved
Statutes ERA s3(a);ERA s4;ERA s15;ERA s18;ERA s18(3);ERA s32;ERA s61;ERA s163;ERA s236(3)
Cases Cited Boat Park Ltd v Hutchinson [1999] 2 NZLR 74
Number of Pages 15
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