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Employment Relations Act 2000

Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement - Compliance orders

137: Power of Authority to order compliance

You could also call this:

“The Authority can make rules to ensure people follow employment agreements and laws”

The Employment Relations Authority can make people follow the rules if they haven’t been doing so. This applies to things like employment agreements, parts of the Employment Relations Act, settlements, and other legal documents.

If someone hasn’t followed the rules, the Authority can tell them to do something specific or to stop doing something. This is to make sure they start following the rules.

The Authority will give a time limit for when the person needs to obey the order.

If you’re an employee, employer, union, or employer organisation, and you think someone hasn’t been following the rules, you can ask the Authority to make an order. You need to show how the rule-breaking has affected you.

The Authority can make these orders as part of any case they’re dealing with, even if the person who broke the rules is just a witness in the case.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=DLM60387.

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138: Further provisions relating to compliance order by Authority, or

“ Extra rules about how the Employment Relations Authority can make people follow their orders ”

Part 9 Personal grievances, disputes, and enforcement
Compliance orders

137Power of Authority to order compliance

  1. This section applies where any person has not observed or complied with—

  2. any provision of—
    1. any employment agreement; or
      1. Parts 1, 3 to 6, 6AB, 6A (except subpart 2), 6B, 6C, 6D, 7, and 9; or
        1. any terms of settlement or decision that section 151 provides may be enforced by compliance order; or
          1. an enforceable undertaking that section 223C(1) provides may be enforced by compliance order; or
            1. an improvement notice that section 223D(6) provides may be enforced by compliance order; or
              1. any terms of a pay equity claim settlement under section 13ZH of the Equal Pay Act 1972; or
                1. a demand notice that section 225(4) provides may be enforced by compliance order; or
                  1. sections 73 and 74 of the Public Service Act 2020 and sections 597 and 600 of the Education and Training Act 2020; or
                    1. sections 76 to 80 of the Public Service Act 2020 and sections 585 to 596 and 660 of the Education and Training Act 2020; or
                      1. section 11(3)(c) of the Health and Disability Services Act 1993; or
                        1. clauses 5 and 6 of Schedule 1 of the Broadcasting Act 1989; or
                          1. sections 83, 83A, and 83B of the Fire Service Act 1975; or
                            1. clauses 18, 19, and 21 of Schedule 5 of the Accident Compensation Act 2001; or
                              1. Part 3 and sections 589 and 600 of the Education and Training Act 2020; or
                                  2. any order, determination, direction, or requirement made or given under this Act by the Authority or a member or officer of the Authority.
                                    1. any order, determination, direction, or requirement made or given under the Screen Industry Workers Act 2022 by the Authority or a member or an officer of the Authority.

                                      1. Where this section applies, the Authority may, in addition to any other power it may exercise, by order require, in or in conjunction with any matter before the Authority under this Act to which that person is a party or in respect of which that person is a witness, that person to do any specified thing or to cease any specified activity, for the purpose of preventing further non-observance of or non-compliance with that provision, order, determination, direction, or requirement.

                                      2. The Authority must specify a time within which the order is to be obeyed.

                                      3. The following persons may take action against another person by applying to the Authority for an order of the kind described in subsection (2):

                                      4. any person (being an employee, employer, union, or employer organisation) who alleges that that person has been affected by non-observance or non-compliance of the kind described in subsection (1).

                                          Compare
                                          • 1991 No 22 s 55(1), (2)
                                          Notes
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(ii): substituted, on , by section 8 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2006 (2006 No 41).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(ii): amended, on , by section 13 of the Domestic Violence—Victims' Protection Act 2018 (2018 No 21).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(ii): amended, on , by section 9 of the Employment Relations (Breaks, Infant Feeding, and Other Matters) Amendment Act 2008 (2008 No 58).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(iiia): inserted, on , by section 19 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 125).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(iiib): inserted, on , by section 19 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 125).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(iiic): inserted, on , by section 33 of the Equal Pay Amendment Act 2020 (2020 No 45).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(v): replaced, on , by section 135 of the Public Service Act 2020 (2020 No 40).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(vi): replaced, on , by section 135 of the Public Service Act 2020 (2020 No 40).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(x): substituted, on , by section 337(1) of the Accident Compensation Act 2001 (2001 No 49).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(x): amended on , pursuant to section 5(1)(b) of the Accident Compensation Amendment Act 2010 (2010 No 1).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(xi): inserted, on , by section 668 of the Education and Training Act 2020 (2020 No 38).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(xi): repealed, on , by section 10 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 73).
                                          • Section 137(1)(a)(xii): repealed, on , by section 7(1) of the Fair Pay Agreements Act Repeal Act 2023 (2023 No 65).
                                          • Section 137(1)(c): inserted, on , by section 103 of the Screen Industry Workers Act 2022 (2022 No 52).
                                          • Section 137(4): substituted, on , by section 33(4) of the Health and Safety in Employment Amendment Act 2002 (2002 No 86).
                                          • Section 137(4)(b): repealed, on , by section 10 of the Employment Relations Amendment Act 2015 (2015 No 73).