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Employment Relations Act 2000

Flexible working short-term for people affected by family violence - Resolving disputes

69ABG: Employee has choice of procedure at initial stage

You could also call this:

“If you think your boss didn't follow the rules about flexible working, you can choose how to get help.”

If you think your employer hasn’t followed the rules in section 69ABE, you have three choices for what to do next:

You can ask a Labour Inspector for help. They will try their best to help you and your employer sort out the problem.

You can ask for mediation. This means someone will help you and your employer talk about the problem and try to fix it.

You can ask the Authority to decide if your employer followed the rules in section 69ABE or not.

You need to choose one of these options within 6 months of a certain date. This date is either:

The day your employer tells you they won’t do what you asked, if they tell you within 10 working days of you asking, or

10 working days after you asked, if your employer doesn’t answer 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=LMS186662.

Topics:
Work and jobs > Worker rights
Rights and equality > Anti-discrimination
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69ABF: Grounds for refusal of request by employer, or

“When a boss can say no to a worker's request for changes due to family violence”

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69ABH: Mediation after initial reference to Labour Inspector, or

“If you're unhappy with what the Labour Inspector said, you can ask someone else to help you and your boss talk about it.”

Part 6AB Flexible working short-term for people affected by family violence
Resolving disputes

69ABGEmployee has choice of procedure at initial stage

  1. This section applies if an employee believes that the employee’s employer has not complied with section 69ABE.

  2. The employee may do 1 of the following:

  3. refer the matter to a Labour Inspector who must, to the extent practicable in the circumstances, assist the employee and employer to resolve the matter; or
    1. refer the matter to mediation, at which the matter is treated as an employment relationship problem; or
      1. apply to the Authority for a determination as to whether the employer has complied with section 69ABE.

        1. A reference or application under subsection (2)(a), (b), or (c) must be made within 6 months after the relevant date.

        2. In subsection (3), relevant date means,—

        3. if the employer notifies a refusal within 10 working days after receiving a request, the date on which the employer notifies the employee of the employer’s refusal; or
          1. in any other case, the date that is 10 working days after the employer receives the employee’s request.

            Notes
            • Section 69ABG: inserted, on , by section 6 of the Domestic Violence—Victims' Protection Act 2018 (2018 No 21).