| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | WA 70/10 |
| Hearing date | 11 Mar 2010 |
| Determination date | 15 April 2010 |
| Member | P R Stapp |
| Representation | A McKenzie, D Goldwater ; S Langton, G Malone |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Thompson v Asurequality Ltd and Anor |
| Other Parties | Affco New Zealand Ltd |
| Summary | DISPUTE – Triangular employment – Applicant sought return to workplace after banned from workplace by workplace owner (Respondent (“B”)) – Applicant employed by respondent (“A”) – Applicant employed by A to provide services at B’s site – B banned applicant from site after incident involving applicant and B’s employees – A found no serious misconduct by applicant in relation to incident – A supported applicant’s return to workplace but argued B’s lawful refusal to allow return meant employment frustrated – B claimed Authority had no jurisdiction to order applicant’s return to workplace as not employee of B – Applicant claimed Authority had jurisdiction and had right of entry under Animal Products Act 1999 (“APA”) – Alternatively claimed, could invoke Contracts Privity Act 1982 (“CPA”) for relief regarding arrangement between A and B – Applicant denied employment with B frustrated – Authority found no jurisdiction to resolve cause of action regarding A that related to right of entry and trespass – Found Authority has no direct authority to resolve problems under ERA 2000 as B not applicant’s employer – Found APA 1999 did not provide express power of right of entry to “official assessors” – Authority rejected applicant’s arguments under CPA 1982 - Found applicant’s circumstances as being on special leave prevented decision on whether employment frustrated – Found fact applicant could not return to work at B’s site did not present obstacles to future if no other arrangements agreed to – Found if decision made to terminate employment may mean decision by A that applicant’s continuation with A frustrated – Applications dismissed – Official assessor |
| Result | Applications dismissed ; Costs reserved |
| Main Category | Jurisdiction |
| Statutes | ERA Schedule 2 cl1;Animal Products Act 1999 s87;Animal Products Act 1999 s88;Animal Products Act 1999 s78;Animal Products Act 1999 s79;Animal Products Act 1999 s91(1);Animal Products Act 1999 s94;Trespass Act 1980 s13;ERA s134(2);ERA s161;ERA s162;Contracts Privity Act 1982 s4 |
| Cases Cited | Pain Management Systems (NZ) Ltd v McCallum unreported, Panckhurst J, 14 September 2001, HC Christchurch, CP 72/01;BDM Grange Ltd v Parker [2005] ERNZ 343 |
| Number of Pages | 11 |
| PDF File Link: | wa 70_10.pdf [pdf 38 KB] |