The first thing is that we really should have ensured that our back up had experience playing in crunch games. Now Colin Slade is a good footballer. In his first test with the All Blacks he steered the team to a come from behind victory against the Wallabies. He has also proven himself at the ITM Cup and Super Fifteen level. However, this is the World Cup and we all knew there was a chance that this could happen. Therefore, the coaches really should have invested greater efforts in giving Carter’s back up more game time – NO I AM NOT TALKING ROTATION!!!!!!
The second thing that this latest incident has made me think of is employment law. Yes, I can even turn Dan Carter’s injury into an employment law issue. With all this talk of replacements I began thinking what if Carter was not an All Black but, rather, an average Joe Blog who had hurt himself playing weekend rugby. Injuries and other illnesses are an area of concern for many employers as they must do what is right by the injured or unwell employee and by their business. If Mr Carter was unable to perform his job due to his injuries, this would be the cause of some woe for his employer.
So, what should an employer do in such situations?
Like all employment law issues, the first thing to do is not to act hastily. If an employee has an injury or illness, the first thing to do is to speak with the employee and gather more information. The first piece of crucial information to ask (after ensuring that the employee is OK, as all good employers should do) is to assess the nature of the injury or sickness. It may be that the employee has, like Dan, pulled a groin and this may not affect the performance of his work. Therefore, he or she can continue to work. However, if the illness interferes with the performance of his or her work, then the next step is to assess how long this is likely to keep him or her out of work.
No doubt the employee will seek a medical opinion and an employer should keep open communication with the employee as to what this opinion is. Then, if the employee is only out of work for a short time, the employer may be able to get by until such time as the employee returns. However, the main cause of angst among employers is when an employee will be away from work indefinitely. In such an instance, as in most instances of employment law, there needs to be consultation with the employee. This consultation should discuss all possible ways in which the employer can get by without the employee. It may be the case that an employer can employ temporary staff or a reshuffle of current staff. However it should only be the last port of call that employment is terminated due to the employee being medically unfit. When this appears to be the only option, an employer should ensure that they follow the correct procedure and treat the employee fairly and reasonably.
In the case of Dan Carter, there is going to have to be the use of a temporary replacement. Most of the country is divided into two camps, the Colin Slade and the Piri Weepu camp. Piri is the only choice. One, he has experience and two it means Jimmy gets back to the starting position where he should have always been.
