What are my rights if I’ve been made redundant or dismissed?
Does my employer have the right to terminate my employment?
If you are made redundant, it must be for genuine commercial reasons; that is, your position is no longer needed. This can be due to:
- a decline in available work
- restructuring, including contracting out work
- sale or transfer of the employer’s business.
A forced resignation may have happened if you feel an employer has done either of the following:
- put pressure on you (directly or indirectly) to resign
- made the situation at work intolerable for you.
- If you think your redundancy or dismissal is unfair, try talking to your manager about your concerns
Age or ability are not acceptable reasons for making you redundant
An employer can’t use redundancy as a way of dismissing you for reasons relating to you personally, such as:
- concerns about your performance or reliability
- your age.
In law, there is no set age to retire from work, unless you have a written employment agreement that came into effect after 1 April 1992 and specifies a retirement age.
Check your employment agreement for redundancy clauses
Remember, you are entitled to redundancy compensation only if it is outlined in your employment agreement. Similarly, your employer has to give a minimum notice period only if it is stated in your agreement.
Many employment agreements set out guidelines for what the employer must do in the case of redundancy – make sure you check these have been followed.
Can I challenge a redundancy or dismissal?
If your employment is terminated because of a redundancy or dismissal and you think you’ve been treated unfairly, you can challenge your employer’s decision.
Before you do this, you may want to get advice from:
- a community law centre
- Citizens Advice Bureau
- the Department of Labour.
- You can raise a personal grievance claim by writing a letter to your manager
1. Raise a personal grievance claim
As a first step, you may raise a personal grievance claim with your employer. This must be done within 90 days of the redundancy or dismissal.
You can raise a personal grievance verbally, but it is best to write a letter outlining your problem and desired outcome to the head of your organisation, or your manager.
Remember that you can't raise a personal grievance to challenge a dismissal if you are employed on the 90-day trial period that came into law on 1 March 2009.
2. Seek help from a mediator
If you and your employer can’t come to an agreement, you may get an external mediator to help. A mediator can help you identify problems and look for ways to resolve the disagreement between you and your employer.
If you are employed on a 90-day trial period, you can’t raise a personal grievance, but you can use a mediator to resolve differences.
3. Take your case to the Employment Relations Authority or Employment Court
If you and your employer fail to reach an agreement with the help of a mediator, you may take your case to the Employment Relations Authority or Employment Court, so they can determine the outcome.
However, you may be directed by either of these institutions to try mediation again.
Is there extra protection for vulnerable workers?
- Workers such as cleaners have extra protection during a workplace restructure
If a business changes owners, and positions are restructured, certain workers have extra protection. They are:
- cleaners
- food catering workers
- orderlies in hospitals or rest homes
- laundry workers in hospitals, rest homes or educational institutions
- caretakers in educational institutions.
People in these jobs have the right to transfer to the new employer on their existing terms and conditions of employment.
In all situations, employers must be seen to have acted fairly and reasonably. This includes consulting with employees affected by any decisions that are made about their employment.
Find out more
Other websites
- Business.govt.nz website - ending an employment relationship
- Citizens Advice Bureaux website - contact details
- Coalition of Community Law Centres website - a guide to resolving employment problems (PDF - 1.32MB)
- Coalition of Community Law Centres website - find your nearest community law centre
- Department of Labour website - contact details
- Department of Labour website - links to information on employment agreements and solving problems in the workplace
- Employers and Manufacturers Association website - redundancy guide (PDF - 263KB)
- NZ Herald website - your rights: made redundant without warning
- NZ Human Rights Commission website - human rights and redundancy
