| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Auckland |
| Reference No | AA 513/10 |
| Hearing date | 18 May 2010 |
| Determination date | 15 December 2010 |
| Member | Y S Oldfield |
| Representation | S Mitchell ; A Drake, R Childs |
| Location | Auckland |
| Parties | Mauheni and Anor v Bilfinger Berger Services (New Zealand) Ltd |
| Other Parties | Fainuu |
| Summary | UNJUSTIFIED DISADVANTAGE – Respondent proposed to reduce staff by three – Applicants consulted about disestablishment of positions and being moved to other roles at lower hourly rates than currently on – Respondent claimed applicants opted to take new roles rather than redundancy – Applicants disputed this – Applicants told would be transferred to new positions on current rate of pay but pay to be reduced after four months to reflect new roles – Applicants claimed pay should not be reduced in accordance with collective employment agreement (“CEA”) – Applicants claimed directed to do different work – Respondents denied directed to do different work but given alternative to redundancy – Authority found applicants did not agree to pay cuts – Found transfer to new positions amounted to direction and could not be accompanied by reduction in pay according to CEA – Found open to respondent to offer employment on different terms as alternative to redundancy – Found had offer been put to applicants properly actions of respondent could not have been criticised – Found actions not those of fair and reasonable employer – Unjustified disadvantage – REMEDIES – Reimbursement of lost wages appropriate – Respondent to pay applicants amount of reduction for every hour worked since reduction and date of confirmation of new terms of employment or date of redundancy – Water Servicemen |
| Result | Application granted ; Reimbursement of lost wages ($2.33 per hour for every hour worked between date of reduction and date of confirmation of new terms of employment or date of redundancy)(First applicant) ($1.00 per hour for every hour worked between date of reduction and date of confirmation of new terms of employment or date of redundancy)(Second applicant) ; Costs reserved |
| Main Category | Personal Grievance |
| Number of Pages | 9 |
| PDF File Link: | aa 513_10.pdf [pdf 40 KB] |