| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 65/09 |
| Determination date | 22 May 2009 |
| Member | D Asher |
| Representation | B Laracy ; A Caisley |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Paul v New Zealand Bus Ltd |
| Summary | RAISING PERSONAL GRIEVANCE – Unjustified Disadvantage – Redundancy – Application to strike out personal grievance due to expiry of three year limitation period – Applicant made redundant in 2005 due to restructure of respondent – Applicant subsequently raised personal grievance of unjustified disadvantage, unjustified dismissal and discrimination - Statement of problem filed in 2009 – No further action taken from 2005 to early 2008 - From mid-2008, applicant attempted to establish dialogue with respondent, however, unsuccessful - Applicant’s representative accepted responsibility for lapse of time, claimed mistakenly believed three years “only a guide” and “human error” should not be taken advantage of – Respondent claimed extension of time should not be granted – Claimed applicant’s position disestablished in 2005 and former management team unavailable as witnesses – Claimed grievance intrinsically unmeritorious – Claimed applicant pushed redundancy to claim compensation – Claimed inadequate explanation for failure to pursue grievance within time – Authority found applicant did not account for failure to commence proceedings within time – Found respondent’s failure to enter into dialogue with applicant possible breach of good faith, however applicant also non-communicative at times – Found prejudice suffered by both parties – Applicant unable to commence proceedings due to representative’s error – Respondent’s ability to defend grievance weakened with passage of time – Found grievance not entirely unmeritorious but ability to prove grievance weakened – Found overall justice favoured respondent – Delay of two months significant – Prejudice suffered by respondent outweighed reason for delay – Strike out granted |
| Result | Application granted ; Costs reserved |
| Main Category | Raising PG |
| Statutes | ERA s5;ERA s114;ERA s114(3);ERA s114(4)(a);ERA s114(6);ERA s115;ERA s115(b);ERA s219(1) |
| Cases Cited | Day v Whitcoulls Group Ltd [1997] ERNZ 541;Lowe Walker Paeroa Ltd v Bennett [1998] 2 ERNZ 558;Roberts v Commissioner of Police, unreported, Colgan CJ, 27 Jun 2006, AC 33/06;Stevenson v Hato Paora College Trust Board [2002] 2 ERNZ 103 |
| Number of Pages | 10 |
| PDF File Link: | wa 65_09.pdf [pdf 27 KB] |