Plain language law

New Zealand law explained for everyone

 Plain Language Law homepage
Back to
102: Employee may pursue personal grievance under this Act
or “If you think you've been treated unfairly at work, you can tell someone about it using this law.”
You could also call this:

“This law explains what counts as a personal grievance, which is when an employee feels their employer has treated them unfairly at work.”

In New Zealand, a personal grievance is a complaint you can make against your employer or former employer. You can make a personal grievance if:

You think you were unfairly dismissed from your job.

Your work conditions have been changed in a way that’s unfair to you.

You’ve been treated unfairly at work because of who you are or what you believe.

Someone at work has sexually harassed you.

You’ve been treated badly at work because you’ve experienced family violence, or someone thinks you have.

Someone at work has racially harassed you.

You’ve been pressured about joining or not joining a union.

Your employer hasn’t followed the rules about keeping your job when the business changes hands.

Your work agreement doesn’t follow the rules about rest and meal breaks.

Your employer hasn’t given you a copy of your work agreement or told you about your right to join a union.

Your employer has done something unsafe or tried to stop you from speaking up about safety issues at work.

Your employer has treated you badly because you reported wrongdoing at work.

If you have a personal grievance, you can complain about your boss or anyone else at work who has power over you or other workers. Remember, if your complaint is just about how your work agreement is understood or used, that’s not considered an unfair action by your employer.

This text is automatically generated. It might be out of date or be missing some parts. Find out more about how we do this.

Next up: 103A: Test of justification

or “This explains how to decide if an employer acted fairly when dismissing or disciplining an employee.”
Next

Part 9 Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement
Personal grievances

103Personal grievance

  1. For the purposes of this Act, personal grievance means any grievance that an employee may have against the employee's employer or former employer because of a claim—

  2. that the employee has been unjustifiably dismissed; or
    1. that the employee's employment, or 1 or more conditions of the employee's employment (including any condition that survives termination of the employment), is or are or was (during employment that has since been terminated) affected to the employee's disadvantage by some unjustifiable action by the employer; or
      1. that the employee has been discriminated against in the employee's employment; or
        1. that the employee has been sexually harassed in the employee's employment; or
          1. that the employee has been treated adversely in the employee’s employment on the ground that the employee is, or is suspected or assumed or believed to be, a person affected by family violence; or
            1. that the employee has been racially harassed in the employee's employment; or
              1. that the employee has been subject to duress in the employee's employment in relation to membership or non-membership of a union or employees organisation; or
                1. that the employee's employer has failed to comply with a requirement of Part 6A; or
                  1. that the employee has been disadvantaged by the employee’s employment agreement not being in accordance with section 67C, 67D, 67G, or 67H; or
                    1. that the employee’s employer has contravened section 67F or 67G(3); or
                      1. that the employee’s employer has, in relation to the employee,—
                        1. engaged in adverse conduct for a prohibited health and safety reason; or
                          1. contravened section 92 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 (which prohibits coercion or inducement); or
                          2. that the employer has retaliated, or threatened to retaliate, against the employee in breach of section 21 of the Protected Disclosures (Protection of Whistleblowers) Act 2022 (because the employee intends to make or has made a protected disclosure).

                            1. For the purposes of this Part, a representative, in relation to an employer and in relation to an alleged personal grievance, means a person—

                            2. who is employed by that employer; and
                              1. who either—
                                1. has authority over the employee alleging the grievance; or
                                  1. is in a position of authority over other employees in the workplace of the employee alleging the grievance.

                                  2. In subsection (1)(b), unjustifiable action by the employer does not include an action deriving solely from the interpretation, application, or operation, or disputed interpretation, application, or operation, of any provision of any employment agreement.

                                  3. For the purposes of sections 103B, 115A, and 123A, the provisions of this Act that describe, define terms relating to, and provide for the application of the grounds for a personal grievance under subsection (1) apply with all necessary modifications as if—

                                  4. references to the employer were references to the controlling third party; and
                                    1. references to the employee’s employment included work the employee has performed under the control or direction of a controlling third party.

                                      Compare
                                      • 1991 No 22 s 27
                                      Notes
                                      • Section 103(1)(da): inserted, on , by section 8 of the Domestic Violence—Victims' Protection Act 2018 (2018 No 21).
                                      • Section 103(1)(da): amended, on , by section 259(1) of the Family Violence Act 2018 (2018 No 46).
                                      • Section 103(1)(f): amended, on , by section 7(1) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 41).
                                      • Section 103(1)(g): added, on , by section 7(2) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 41).
                                      • Section 103(1)(g): amended, on , by section 7(1) of the Employment Relations (Breaks, Infant Feeding, and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 58).
                                      • Section 103(1)(h): replaced, on , by section 10 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 9).
                                      • Section 103(1)(i): inserted, on , by section 10 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 9).
                                      • Section 103(1)(i): amended, on , by section 44 of the Statutes Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 104).
                                      • Section 103(1)(j): inserted, on , by section 5 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 73).
                                      • Section 103(1)(k): inserted, on , by section 40 of the Protected Disclosures (Protection of Whistleblowers) Act 2022 (2022 No 20).
                                      • Section 103(4): inserted, on , by section 5 of the Employment Relations (Triangular Employment) Amendment Act 2019 (LI 2019 No 36).