| Summary |
RAISING PERSONAL GRIEVANCE – Applicants claimed personal grievance raised within 90 days – Respondent argued substance of communications did not meet s114(2) Employment Relations Act 2000 (“ERA”) – Applicants dismissed for serious misconduct – Applicants’ union representative (“H”) emailed respondent manager (“K”) raising five matters – First, invitation to attend mediation – Second, respondent’s treatment of applicants worse than previous cases – Third, dismissal took place against proper advice – Fourth, procedural deficiencies – Fifth, applicants sought reinstatement and compensation – H and K subsequently discussed matters raised in email, however, K did not link conversation with email – Parties wrongly assumed during conversation grievance already raised and matter heading to litigation – Authority found irrelevant respondent wrongly assumed grievance already raised and conversely unnecessary for H to follow entire grievance process each time matters discussed – Authority’s investigation focused on objective analysis of totality of communications between parties - Found email raised aspects of procedural and substantive deficiencies of applicants’ dismissals and put respondent on notice grievance would be raised – Found telephone conversation built on email adding substance to allegation respondent “had no right” to dismiss applicants - Found K’s acceptance of applicants’ offer to mediate matters made respondent aware of grievances – Found totality of communications sufficiently raised grievances of unjustified dismissal and procedural unfairness for respondent to address grievances on its merits at first instance – Found grievances raised within 90 days – Corrections Officer |