| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 152/06 |
| Hearing date | 1 Sep 2006 |
| Determination date | 02 November 2006 |
| Member | D Asher |
| Representation | D Martin ; P Gunn |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | New Zealand Educational Institute Te Riu Roa Inc v Lyman, Acting as the Comissioner of Linwood Intermediate School & Ors |
| Other Parties | Board of Trustees of Woolston School, The Secretary for Education |
| Summary | DISPUTE - Other respondents required to act with Secretary for Education on matter - Secretary claimed collective employment agreement (CEA") not intended to apply in circumstances - Alternatively, submitted Insufficient evidence to show requirements of CEA met - CEA provided where sickness traced directly to conditions or circumstances of work, paid sick leave not to be debited from teacher's sick leave balance, instead to be "disregarded sick leave" - Applicant claimed member's illness directly traceable to severely dysfunctional working environment and employer's inadequate attempts to address matters - Secretary argued provision intended to cover physical disability arising out of physical conditions or circumstances, e.g. infectious illnesses - Provision in response to 1919 influenza pandemic - Claimed no justification for extending entitlement to employment relationship problems and unnecessary and inappropriate to attempt to pursue grievance through strained interpretation of CEA - Dictionary definition of "sick" included mental illness - Authority did not accept original 1919 provisions reliable indicators of terms and conditions agreed in recent versions of CEA - Inconceivable respondents, as good employers, could justify applying provisions by way of questionable, if not spurious, distinction to those suffering physiological illness, while depriving those afflicted with "psychological unwellness" - If person "psychologically unwell" it inevitably followed they were deemed to be sick - Provision to be available without distinction as to physiological or psychological sickness - Whether cause of sickness "can be traced directly to the conditions or circumstances under which the employee is working" separate matter to be determined case by case - If agreement not reached, could take matter further as arrears or lieu claim, or as personal grievance - Prudent for parties to take claim to further mediation in event could not reach prompt agreement" |
| Result | Question answered in favour of applicant ; Orders accordingly ; Costs reserved |
| Statutes | Education Act 1989;State Sector Act 1988 s74A(b) |
| Cases Cited | Association of Staff in Tertiary Education Inc: ASTE Te Hau Takitini o Aotearoa v;Hampton, Chief Executive of the Bay of Plenty Polytechnic [2002] 1 ERNZ 491;Attorney-General v Gilbert [2002] 1 ERNZ 31; [2002] 2 NZLR 342;Lowe Walker Paeroa Ltd v Bennett (1998) 5 NZELC 95,806 ; [1998] 2 ERNZ 558;(CA);Secretary for Education v New Zealand Educational Institute Te Riu Roa [2002] 2 ERNZ 470 |
| Number of Pages | 8 |
| PDF File Link: | wa 152_06.pdf [pdf 29 KB] |