Uber Drivers Drive Change to Law
Employees have benefits other workers (e.g., contractors or volunteers) do not, such as minimum leave entitlements, minimum wage, rest breaks and the right to raise grievances with their employer. As technology changes the nature of work and business structures, an increasing number of workers are operating outside the traditional paradigm of an employment relationship, leading to disputes concerning entitlements.
Proposed Law Changes Weighted in Favour of Employers
The Government introduced the Employment Relations Amendment Bill to Parliament on 17 June 2025 and it is currently awaiting its first reading in the House.
The Bill is intended to amend the Employment Relations Act 2000 to provide a clearer distinction between employees and contractors, exclude employees earning $180,000 per annum or more from raising a personal grievance for unjustified dismissal, and remove the requirement that new employees, for their first 30 days of employment, are placed on an employment agreement with the same terms as any relevant collective agreement.
The Bill also proposes to significantly change how an employee’s conduct is assessed during a personal grievance claim.
"A Load of Bollocks" - Behaviour Outside the Workplace
At a recent media event at Wellington Railway Station, reporters’ questions for Minister for Rail Winston Peters were railroaded by a disgruntled bystander expressing his view that the new rail funding being announced was a “load of bollocks.”
