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New Zealand law explained for everyone

Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987

Remedies available to employees

57: Procedures for settlement of parental leave complaints

You could also call this:

“How to solve problems about parental leave at work”

If you have a complaint about parental leave, there are steps you should follow to try to fix the problem. First, you should tell your boss about the issue as soon as you can. This gives your boss a chance to fix the problem quickly.

If talking to your boss doesn’t work, or if you don’t feel comfortable talking to your boss about it, you have two choices. You can tell someone from a union that you belong to or could join. Or, you can handle it yourself or ask someone else (like a lawyer) to help you. If you choose this option, you or your helper will need to talk to your employer or someone who speaks for your employer.

If you told someone from a union, and they think your complaint is serious, they will talk to your employer for you.

If the problem isn’t solved by talking, you need to write down your complaint. Your written complaint should include all the important facts about what happened and explain exactly what your problem is.

These steps are part of a bigger process for dealing with parental leave complaints. There are more steps explained in other parts of the law that you might need to follow too.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM121041.

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56: Parental leave complaints, or

“How to complain if your boss doesn't follow parental leave rules”

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58: Power to refer complaint to Employment Relations Authority, or

“The Employment Relations Authority can help solve parental leave problems”

Part 7 Remedies available to employees

57Procedures for settlement of parental leave complaints

  1. The procedures for the settlement of a parental leave complaint shall be in accordance with this section and sections 58 to 67.

  2. As soon as practicable after a parental leave complaint arises, the employee shall submit the complaint to the employee's immediate supervisor, affording the immediate supervisor an opportunity to remedy the cause of the complaint, the intent being that it is desirable, if the circumstances permit it, to settle the complaint rapidly and as near as possible to the point of origin.

  3. Where any such attempt at settlement has failed, or where the complaint is of such a nature that a direct discussion between the employee and the employee's immediate supervisor would be inappropriate, the employee shall either—

  4. notify the branch secretary or secretary or a duly authorised representative of any union to which the employee belongs or could belong; or
    1. where the employee elects to act on his or her own behalf or to appoint an agent or barrister or solicitor to act on his or her behalf, forthwith take the matter up, or arrange for that agent, barrister, or solicitor, as the case may be, to take up the matter on his or her behalf, with the employer or the representative of the employer.

      1. Where the person notified under subsection (3)(a) considers that there is some substance in the parental leave complaint, that person shall forthwith take the matter up with the employer or the representative of the employer.

      2. If the matter is not disposed of in discussion with the employer or the representative of the employer, the complaint shall be reduced to writing in a statement setting out all the facts relied on. The statement shall establish the nature of the employee's complaint, and of the issues, for all subsequent consideration of the case.

      Compare
      • 1980 No 162 s 35