Mycoplasma Bovis and Compensation
MPI confirmed on 26 March 2018 that all stock on properties infected with M Bovis will be culled. Stock on properties under a restricted place notice or notices of direction will not be culled.
The actions taken by MPI are set out under the Biosecurity Act 1993 and this Act allows for farmers affected to be compensated for verifiable losses.
Employer role increasing in Visa applications
The days where employers could leave it up to their migrant workers to obtain the appropriate visa from Immigration New Zealand (“INZ”) have ended. Consequences for employers who get it wrong includes losing the ability to hire migrant workers altogether. Below are some common issues we see.
Beware of Knee-Jerk Reactions
Around twenty years ago when I started doing jury trials I remember that I used to smoke in the Crown room over at the court.
At some point the building was then made smoke-free so I used to hang out the window and smoke. When my boss, told me that there were complaints about me hanging out the window and smoking, I kept doing it but lit incense. (I was pretty anti-authoritarian back then and it has just dawned on me incense burning probably breached fire regulations.)
The Disputes Tribunal Process
The Disputes Tribunal is a quick and inexpensive way to settle disputes. Each hearing is run by a referee and they have a wide jurisdiction to deal with low level disputes over almost anything.
Good Faith Obligations for Employers
When we act for an employee in a dispute we quite often hear the employer say that they have lost “trust and confidence” in that employee to carry out their job as required.
The opposite can be true, where an employee may say that they have “lost trust and confidence” in an employer to say, keep them safe in the workplace.
