| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 51/06 |
| Determination date | 31 March 2006 |
| Member | D Asher |
| Representation | G Irwin ; B Fleming |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Fallon v Barnados New Zealand Inc |
| Summary | RAISING OF PERSONAL GRIEVANCE - Respondent alleged applicant had not raised personal grievance within 90 days - Applicant alleged she had raised personal grievance or there were exceptional circumstances upon which Authority could grant leave to raise grievance out of time - Applicant's letter that allegedly raised grievance stated she intended" to initiate personal grievance, would be "taking legal advice regarding" it and would be "contacting us further" - Letter also stated applicant's belief she had been constructively dismissed - Authority satisfied that letter was clear notice to respondent of grievance - Evidence for this conclusion was respondent's reaction because its representatives were sufficiently alerted to its potential to discuss whether or not letter amounted to advice of a grievance - In this instance, because of language in letter and respondent's own uncertainty, and because of express good faith obligations in Employment Relations Act 2000 ("ERA"), Authority found that respondent was under an obligation to advise applicant it would not be regarding her advice as formal notice of grievance and to explain to her reasons for its position - In alternative, s115(b) ERA applied to applicant's situation: having made reasonable arrangements to have grievance raised by her agent (advocate), agent unreasonably failed to ensure it was raised within required time - Just to grant leave to applicant to raise personal grievance - Senior social worker" |
| Result | Application granted ; Costs reserved |
| Statutes | ERA s114;ERA s114(1);ERA s114(4);ERA s115;ERA s115(b) |
| Cases Cited | Goodall v Marigny (NZ) Limited [2000] 2 ERNZ 60;McMillan v Waikanae Holdings (Gisborne) Ltd (t/a McCannics) unreported, Travis J, 27 May 2005, AC 27/05;Winstone Wallboards Limited v Samate [1993] 1 ERNZ 503 |
| Number of Pages | 6 |
| PDF File Link: | wa 51_06.pdf [pdf 25 KB] |