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69J: Employment of employee who elects to transfer to new employer treated as continuous
or “If you choose to work for a new boss, your job counts as one long job, keeping all your work benefits.”

You could also call this:

“Rules for employees moving to a new job when their work changes hands”

This law is about what happens to your job if you work for a company that is changing hands or getting a new contract. Even if you have a fixed-term contract that’s supposed to end when your employer’s contract ends, you can choose to keep working for the new employer.

If you decide to stay on with the new employer, here’s what happens:

If your old employer is giving their work to another company, your contract will now end when the agreement between the two companies ends.

If your new employer is taking over work that was done by another company, the part of your contract about when it ends will no longer apply.

If your employer’s contract is being taken over by a new company, your contract will now end when the agreement between the old company and the new company ends.

If your employer is selling their business, the part of your contract about when it ends will no longer apply.

Remember, you can find more information about choosing to transfer to a new employer in section 69I.

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Next up: 69L: Agreements excluding entitlements for technical redundancy not affected

or “This rule protects agreements that say you don't get extra money if you choose not to work for a new boss.”

Part 6A Continuity of employment if employees' work affected by restructuring
Specified categories of employees

69KTerms and conditions of employment of transferring employee under fixed term employment

  1. This section applies to an employee if—

  2. he or she is an employee of—
    1. person A in the definition of contracting out; or
      1. person B or of a subcontractor in the definition of contracting in; or
        1. person B or of a subcontractor in the definition of subsequent contracting; or
          1. an employer who is selling or transferring the employer's business (or part of it) to another person; and
          2. the employee's terms and conditions of employment include a term agreed under section 66(1) that is—
            1. linked to the expiry or termination of the agreement under which his or her employer performs the work; or
              1. included in contemplation of his or her employer entering into an agreement that constitutes a restructuring.
              2. Despite the employee's terms and conditions of employment containing a term referred to in subsection (1)(b), the employee may elect, under section 69I, to transfer to the new employer.

              3. If the employee elects, under section 69I, to transfer to the new employer, then the following provisions apply:

              4. if the restructuring is a contracting out, the employee's terms and conditions of employment must be read and applied as if the term agreed under section 66(1) were linked to the expiry or termination of the agreement between person A and person B (or a subcontractor):
                1. if the restructuring is a contracting in, the employee's terms and conditions of employment cease to include the term referred to in subsection (1)(b):
                  1. if the restructuring is a subsequent contracting, the employee's terms and conditions of employment must be read and applied as if the term agreed under section 66(1) were linked to the expiry or termination of the contract or arrangement between person A and person C (or a subcontractor):
                    1. if the restructuring is a sale or transfer of an employer's business, the employee's terms and conditions of employment cease to include the term referred to in subsection (1)(b).
                      Notes
                      • Section 69K: substituted, on , by section 6 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 41).