The Employment Relations Authority has found an employer
to have unjustifiably disadvantaged and unjustifiably dismissed an employee and
so upheld his personal grievance.
The employer short paid the employee’s wages and holiday
pay and failed to provide him with an employment agreement. When the employee raised these issues with
the employer the employer told the employee that it was in liquidation. That was untrue.
The ERA ordered the company to pay unpaid wages of $2,800,
lost wages following his dismissal of $7,660 and compensation for the hurt and
humiliation suffered by way of the unjustified dismissal of $18,000.
In addition the employer was fined $2,000 for failing to
provide a written employment agreement and $3,000 for its breach of good faith
in lying about its position as to liquidation.
The ERA held that this was designed to discourage the employee from
proceeding with his claims, but was untrue and done in bad faith.
The ERA ordered that $2,500 of the $5,000 penalties be
paid to the employee, with the other 50% going to the Crown.
Alan
Knowsley
Employment
Lawyer Wellington
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