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Employment Relations Act 2000

Flexible working short-term for people affected by family violence

69AB: Object of this Part

You could also call this:

"Help at Work if You're Affected by Family Violence"

Illustration for Employment Relations Act 2000

The object of this part of the law is to help you if you are an employee affected by family violence. You have the right to ask for a short-term change to your work arrangements, like your hours or days, to help you deal with the effects of family violence. Your employer must consider your request as soon as possible, but no later than 10 working days after they receive it. You can ask for a change to your work arrangements for up to two months to help you deal with family violence. Your employer can only refuse your request if they need proof of family violence and you do not provide it, or if they cannot reasonably accommodate your request. If your employer does not follow the rules, you can take the matter to a Labour Inspector, mediation, or the Authority.

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View the original legislation for this page at https://legislation.govt.nz/act/public/1986/0120/latest/link.aspx?id=LMS186635.

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69AAL: Review of operation of Part after 2 years, or

"The law will be checked after two years to see how well it's working."

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69ABA: Interpretation, or

"This section explains important words and ideas used in the law about flexible work for people affected by family violence."

Part 6ABFlexible working short-term for people affected by family violence

69ABObject of this Part

  1. The object of this Part is to—

  2. provide employees who are people affected by family violence with a statutory right to make, or to have made on their behalf, a request for a short-term (2-month or shorter) variation of their working arrangements (including any additional terms that need variation), for the purpose of assisting the employees to deal with the effects on the employees of being people affected by family violence; and
    1. require an employer to deal with a request as soon as possible but not later than 10 working days after receiving it; and
      1. provide that an employer may refuse a request only if proof of family violence is required and not produced, or the request cannot be accommodated reasonably on certain non-accommodation grounds; and
        1. if an employer does not deal with a request in accordance with this Part, provide for reference of the matter to a Labour Inspector, mediation, or the Authority.

          Notes
          • Section 69AB: inserted, on , by section 6 of the Domestic Violence—Victims' Protection Act 2018 (2018 No 21).
          • Section 69AB(a): amended, on , by section 259(1) of the Family Violence Act 2018 (2018 No 46).
          • Section 69AB(c): amended, on , by section 259(1) of the Family Violence Act 2018 (2018 No 46).