Employment Relations Amendment Bill

I move, That the Employment Relations Amendment Bill be now read a first time. I nominate the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee to consider the Employment Relations Amendment Bill. This bill implements the Government’s policies aimed at a flexible and fair employment relations framework for both employees and employers. The bill continues our strong, unrelenting focus on reducing compliance costs and unnecessarily burdensome regulation. We want to ensure that employers have the confidence to compete and expand, while key protections for employees are maintained. There are matters in this bill in which I am anticipating keen interest, such as the amendments to Part 6A of the Employment Relations Act. On that particular issue, for example, I encourage submissions. I will watch the select committee process with interest, and I am open to considering changes that may be recommended.

This Government is committed to maintaining the framework for collective bargaining, but we wish to ensure that there is adequate flexibility and choice within that framework. The Government is also keen that ineffective and unnecessarily protracted bargaining that has productivity and other social impacts is avoided, and that the fairness and balance of bargaining requirements are appropriate. To prevent unnecessary and protracted collective bargaining, the bill will return to the original position of the duty of good faith in the Employment Relations Act, whereby a concluded collective agreement is not required. Additionally, to provide certainty for parties that collective bargaining is concluded, they will be able to apply for a declaration to that effect from the Employment Relations Authority.

The Government is proposing several other improvements to the collective bargaining framework. These improvements will offer workplaces greater flexibility and will remove unnecessary requirements. The proposals include employers being able to opt out of being a party to bargaining for multi-employer collective agreements. This recognises that employers should not have to enter negotiations with other employers that may be their competitors. Another proposal is to remove the 30-day rule for new employees who are not union members. Employers will now be able to offer the terms and conditions they want to offer to new employees who are not union members, instead of being required to offer the terms and conditions in the relevant collective agreement for the first 30 days of employment. Unions and employers will now be able to initiate collective bargaining at the same time. A collective agreement will now continue in force for up to 12 months after it expires, whether it is the union or the employer that initiated bargaining, resulting in a level playing field.

The bill provides that in response to a partial strike, employers will have the additional choice of either reducing an employee’s pay by a proportionate amount or deducting a fixed percentage of wages. Currently, employers are restricted in their response to a partial strike. They can suspend employees, lock them out, or simply accept the partial performance of work by employees. This proposal provides for more proportionate responses. More certainty is needed in the bargaining environment, in relation to industrial action. Employers and employees need to know what action the other is undertaking and the nature of that action before it begins. The bill will improve the current lack of certainty by requiring advance written notice of any proposed strikes and lockouts. This is similar to the current regime for strikes and lockouts in essential services. Any withdrawal of that notice will also need to be in writing. Failure to provide the required notice of a strike or lockout will mean that the action will be unlawful.

This Government also considers that employees and employers should be able to agree on flexible work practices that suit both parties. To this end, following a statutory review of the flexible working arrangements provisions under the Act in 2012, the Government is proposing a number of changes that acknowledge that the workplace needs to better reflect modern lifestyles. These proposed changes include extending the right to request flexible working arrangements to all employees, removing the 6-month period before an employee can request flexible work, removing the limit on the number of requests an employee may make for flexible work over a 12-month period, and reducing the time frame for employers to consider requests for flexible working arrangements. Flexible working arrangements not only provide employees with work-life balance but improve productivity. This provides a win-win for New Zealand employers and employees.

The bill addresses issues arising from a case considered in the Employment Court involving restructuring at Massey University. The case highlighted conflicting obligations for employers regarding the disclosure of personal information under the Employment Relations Act, the Privacy Act, and the Official Information Act. This has created uncertainly for New Zealand employers. The bill will therefore amend the duty of good faith to clarify that it does not require employers to provide an employee with access to confidential personal information about another person or to evaluate material about the employee concerned where an employer is proposing to make a decision that will or is likely to affect an employee’s continued employment.

Last year the Government completed a review of the continuity of employment provisions in Part 6A of the Act. The review found that there were significant operational issues for businesses. These issues centred on transferring employees’ entitlements and information to a new employer. The proposals in the bill will provide more certainty and clarity for employers, while retaining key benefits for affected employees. Also, the Government has been especially concerned about the impact of Part 6A on small to medium sized businesses. The bill will exempt small to medium sized businesses from certain parts of Part 6A, which will remove significant compliance costs for small to medium sized enterprises. The associated persons limitation in the bill is designed to discourage large employers from gaming the exemption by setting up smaller businesses. I am, as I have said, especially keen to hear what affected parties have to say on the Part 6A proposals in the bill—in particular, the associated persons limitation—and how they think it will work in practice. I will carefully consider their submissions and the recommendations of the select committee.

This bill will also speed up Employment Relations Authority processes with regard to determinations. This should be welcomed by employers and employees alike. The authority currently has a best-practice target of 6 weeks to issue a determination. However, this has not been achieved in recent times, and I consider that a statutory time frame is necessary. The bill will require that at the end of an investigation meeting the authority will have to provide either an oral determination followed by a written record of that determination within 3 months or an oral indication of preliminary findings to the parties, subject to additional information being received. Again, a 3-month deadline for a final decision would apply from when the additional information is received. This change supports the authority’s objective of delivering speedy, informal, and practical justice. Additionally, the proposal for an immediate oral determination will provide the parties with an opportunity to consider their respective positions and whether they may wish to settle their dispute between themselves, without waiting for the authority to issue the final written record. The bill proposes to—

I am sorry to interrupt the honourable Minister. The time has come for me to leave the Chair.

Debate interrupted.

The House adjourned at 10 p.m.