| Restrictions | OK |
|---|---|
| Jurisdiction | Employment Relations Authority - Wellington |
| Reference No | [2011] NZERA Wellington 178 |
| Hearing date | 13 Sep 2011 |
| Determination date | 14 November 2011 |
| Member | P R Stapp |
| Representation | G Fitzgerald ; A Sherriff |
| Location | Wellington |
| Parties | Capstick v Secretary for Justice in respect of the Ministry of Justice |
| Summary | ARREARS OF WAGES AND HOLIDAY PAY – Applicant claimed entitled to unpaid wages and holiday pay for unexpired portion of fixed term agreement – Respondent claimed agreement allowed applicant’s position to be made redundant and denied any monies owed – Respondent general manager (“S”) informed applicant of proposal to disestablish applicant’s position – Applicant claimed had lot of project work to perform over period of agreement – S claimed work associated with applicant’s role reabsorbed by permanent employees – S informed applicant that decision made to disestablish applicant’s position – Authority found applicant had reasonable belief that fixed term agreement would continue for duration – Found applicant’s case essentially rested on claim that agreement null and void – Applicant claimed agreement null and void as appointment letter prevailed over agreement – Found agreement not null and void because applicant signed letter of appointment declaration, applicant accepted agreement as part of arrangement, no ambiguity and difference in terms being applied in both documents, agreement contained clause to end employment early and agreement had provision for termination for different reasons as exceptions to fixed term being absolute – Found respondent entitled to terminate agreement early as genuinely relied on redundancy provision to disestablish applicant’s position – Found no breach of good faith given procedure followed – Application dismissed – COSTS – Unsuccessful arrears claim – Length of investigation meeting not specified – Respondent sought contribution to costs – Applicant to pay $3,000 contribution to respondent’s costs – Project Manager |
| Result | Application dismissed ; Costs in favour of respondent ($3,000) |
| Main Category | Arrears |
| Statutes | ERA s66;ERA s131;ERA s161 |
| Cases Cited | Dowds v Universal College of Learning unreported, P Stapp, 26 November 2008, WA 157/08;Mather v Waikato Institute of Technology (2004) 7 NZELC 94,644;Williams v Attorney-General [1999] 2 ERNZ 457 |
| Number of Pages | 11 |
| PDF File Link: | 2011_NZERA_Wellington_178.pdf [pdf 53 KB] |