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Employment Relations Act 2000

Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement - Penalties

135: Recovery of penalties

You could also call this:

“How you can get money back if someone breaks the rules at work”

If someone breaks an employment agreement or the Employment Relations Act 2000, there are rules about recovering penalties. You can take action to recover a penalty if you’re affected by the breach, if the breach was against you, or if you’re a Labour Inspector in some cases.

The penalties can be up to $10,000 for a person and up to $20,000 for a company. You can claim for more than one penalty against the same person in one action.

When deciding about a penalty, the Authority or court will look at the total amount claimed. They can give the full amount (up to the maximum), a smaller amount, or dismiss the action. They’ll also consider if the person has ignored an improvement notice before.

The Authority or court can let someone pay a penalty in instalments if they’re having money troubles.

You usually have 12 months to start an action for recovering a penalty. This time starts from when you first knew about the problem or when you should have known about it. For some specific breaches, you only have 6 months.

If a court says no to a pecuniary penalty order under section 142E, you have 3 months to start an action for recovering a penalty for the same issue.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM60382.

Topics:
Work and jobs > Worker rights
Money and consumer rights > Consumer protection
Crime and justice > Courts and legal help
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“The boss or worker helper can make someone pay the money they owe if they broke the rules.”

Part 9 Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement
Penalties

135Recovery of penalties

  1. Any action for the recovery of a penalty may be brought,—

  2. in the case of a breach of an employment agreement, at the suit of any party to the employment agreement who is affected by the breach; or
    1. in the case of a breach of this Act, at the suit of any person in relation to whom the breach is alleged to have taken place; or
      1. if permitted in the particular penalty provision, by a Labour Inspector.

        1. Every person who is liable to a penalty under this Act is liable,—

        2. in the case of an individual, to a penalty not exceeding $10,000:
          1. in the case of a company or other corporation, to a penalty not exceeding $20,000.

            1. A claim for 2 or more penalties against the same person may be joined in the same action.

            2. In any claim for a penalty the Authority or the court may give judgment for the total amount claimed, or any amount, not exceeding the maximum specified in subsection (2), or the Authority or the court may dismiss the action.

            3. The Authority or the court may order payment of a penalty by instalments, but only if the financial position of the person paying the penalty requires it.

            4. In determining whether to give judgment for a penalty, and the amount of that penalty, the Authority or the court must consider whether the person against whom the penalty is sought has previously failed to comply with an improvement notice issued under section 223D.

            5. An action for the recovery of a penalty under this Act must be commenced within 12 months or, for a penalty for non-compliance with section 69ABE, within 6 months after the earlier of—

            6. the date when the cause of action first became known to the person bringing the action; or
              1. the date when the cause of action should reasonably have become known to the person bringing the action.

                1. Despite subsection (5), if a court refuses to make a pecuniary penalty order under section 142E, an action for the recovery of a penalty under this Act in relation to the same matter must be commenced within 3 months after the refusal.

                Compare
                • 1991 No 22 s 53
                Notes
                • Section 135(2)(a): amended, on , by section 18(1) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 125).
                • Section 135(2)(b): amended, on , by section 18(2) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 125).
                • Section 135(4A): inserted, on , by section 44(1) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act (No 2) 2004 (2004 No 86).
                • Section 135(4B): inserted, on , by section 18(3) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 125).
                • Section 135(5): substituted, on , by section 44(2) of the Employment Relations Amendment Act (No 2) 2004 (2004 No 86).
                • Section 135(5): amended, on , by section 12 of the Domestic Violence—Victims' Protection Act 2018 (2018 No 21).
                • Section 135(6): inserted, on , by section 13 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2016 (2016 No 9).