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Employment Relations Act 2000

Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement - Personal grievances

119: Presumption in discrimination cases

You could also call this:

“What happens if you think your employer treated you unfairly because of who you are or what you do”

If you are taking a case to the Authority or the court, and you can show that your employer did something or did not do something as described in section 104(1), then something important might happen. You also need to show that this action or lack of action was related to you. If you are saying that you were discriminated against because of your union membership or activities, you need to show that you are the kind of person described in section 107.

If you can show these things, then it is assumed that your employer discriminated against you for the reasons you are alleging, as described in section 104(1).

This assumption can be challenged, which means your employer can try to prove that they did not discriminate against you.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM60359.

Topics:
Work and jobs > Worker rights Rights and equality > Anti-discrimination

Part 9 Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement
Personal grievances

119Presumption in discrimination cases

  1. Subsection (2) applies if, in any matter before the Authority or the court,—

  2. the employee establishes that the employer or the employer's representative took any action or omitted any action as described in any of paragraphs (a) to (c) of section 104(1) in relation to that employee; and
    1. if it is a case where the employee alleges that the discrimination was by reason directly or indirectly of the employee's union membership status or involvement in union activities, the employee establishes that he or she was a person described in section 107.

      1. If this subsection applies, there is a rebuttable presumption that the employer or representative of the employer discriminated against the employee on the grounds, or for the reason, specified in section 104(1) and alleged by the employee.

      Notes
      • Section 119(1)(b): amended, on , by section 34 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2018 (2018 No 53).