| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 42/09 |
| Hearing date | 1 Apr 2009 |
| Determination date | 02 April 2009 |
| Member | G J Wood |
| Representation | S Beacham ; No appearance |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Harper v Blair Street Sports Bar Ltx (in receivership) |
| Summary | UNJUSTIFIED DISADVANTAGE – No appearance for respondent – Respondent alleged applicant undercharged customer during work shift because receipt in till did not match transaction nearest to time - Applicant explained latest transaction was by cash while receipt was an unrelated EFTPOS transaction made earlier - Respondent rejected explanation despite not checking till records – Applicant escorted off work premises – No discussion of whether applicant suspended or dismissed – Respondent advised meeting for following day – Applicant obtained new employment immediately after incident – No meeting took place – Applicant believed position terminated - Four days later, applicant went into workplace to “clear name” – Respondent told applicant was only suspended and was rostered to work following weekend – Parties unsuccessfully attempted to arrange meeting to resolve employment relations – Applicant resigned - Authority found respondent’s actions constituted unjustified disadvantage – Applicant had no opportunity to clear name, no investigation into allegation and not informed of employment status – Disadvantage unjustified – REMEDIES – No contributory conduct – Found $3,000 compensation appropriate – Applicant mitigated loss by immediately securing new employment – COSTS – Found $1,500 reasonable contribution appropriate – Costs in favour of applicant - Bartender |
| Result | Application granted ; Compensation for humiliation etc ($3,000) ; Costs in favour of applicant ($1,500) |
| Main Category | Personal Grievance |
| Statutes | ERA cl12, sch7 |
| Number of Pages | 4 |
| PDF File Link: | wa 42_09.pdf [pdf 18 KB] |