December has arrived and your employees may be entitled to public
holiday pay over the Christmas and New Year period. It’s important to
understand your obligations as an employer at this time of year.
Your employees are allowed a paid day off work on a public holiday if
that day would usually be a working day.
Public holidays 2013/2014:
- Christmas Day (Wednesday 25 December),
- Boxing Day (Thursday 26 December)
- New Year’s Day and the day after (Wednesday 1 and Thursday 2
January).
These four public holidays are separate from annual holidays.
Some small businesses require their employees to work on public
holidays. If this is the case, they’re entitled to be paid time and a
half for the hours worked and to receive a full day’s alternative
holiday. You should put in writing an agreement with the employee to
transfer the holiday to another day.
If your employee is sick and can’t work on your agreed day, you’ll
need to pay them as if they had a paid, unworked public holiday.
For most employers, the working week doesn’t vary which makes it easy
for you and your employees to agree to whether the public holiday dates
are usual working days or not. If you can’t come to an agreement,
consider:
- Your employee’s usual work patterns,
- What their employment agreement says
- Whether your employee would have usually been rostered to work on
the day if it wasn’t a public holiday
For more information on managing your staff
and leave entitlements read this guide to holidays
and entitlements.
If you are a retailer or service based business gearing up for a bumper
Christmas season, now’s a great time to polish up on your knowledge of
your responsibilities under the Fair Trading and Consumer Guarantees Acts.
Both Acts affect the way that you can legally advertise and sell your
products – from running Christmas sales and promotions to resolving
customer returns and disputes.
The Fair Trading Act
The Fair Trading Act (FTA) covers all aspects of the promotion and sale
of goods and services, and this includes pricing. The key point to
remember is that all claims your business makes about price must be clear
and accurate.
Sales and Promotions
In the mind of your customer, the word ‘sale’ means an opportunity
to buy goods at reduced prices for a limited time.
There are many different types of sales, but all generally imply that a
lower price than usual is being charged. Any goods or services a business
promotes as part of a sale must be priced below normal levels to avoid
misleading customers. If a sale doesn’t include stock already on sale or
discounted, then this must be clearly stated.
The Consumer Guarantees Act
The Consumer Guarantees Act (CGA) protects customers from poor quality
services and goods that do not meet reasonable customer expectations.
The CGA applies to all goods bought for personal or household use –
such as clothes, food, appliances, and furniture. Vehicles, pets, plants
and trees, and second-hand goods are also covered as well as goods sold by
hire purchase or hired out for use.
The Act also applies when you buy these types of household goods to use
in your business – such as a toaster for the staff cafeteria – unless
the seller’s contract, or its terms and conditions, specifically exclude
goods bought for business purposes.
If you sell or buy goods that are not normally bought for household use
these aren’t covered by the CGA – such as a hardware store selling
tools to professional tradespeople. These goods aren’t covered even if
they are purchased by a consumer for household use.
Resolving Customer Issues
If the problem with the goods can be fixed, then your customer can ask
you to put it right. You must provide a remedy, but you do have the choice
of whether you will repair the goods, replace the goods or give a refund.
You must act within a reasonable time and provide the repair or
replacement free of charge.
What if a Customer changes their mind about the
Goods?
You don’t have to give a refund or a replacement if the customer has
decided they no longer want the goods or if their circumstances have
changed. It’s your choice whether you offer a refund or any other remedy
if a customer has changed their mind or decided they can't afford the
goods.
However, if you told the consumer that they could get a refund or a
credit note if they change their mind, then that is part of your contract
with them.
When a customer changes their mind about goods they are paying off on
layby they have the right to a refund under the Layby Sales Act.
Find
out more about the Layby Sales Act.
What if you pointed out a Defect before they bought it?
You will not be liable for a fault if you display a sign or tag with
the goods that specifically states what the fault is – for example,
"this appliance has a scratch on the left side".
You can only exclude liability for specific faults that you know exist.
You can’t use a sign to avoid responsibility for unknown faults that may
occur.
CGA for Service Businesses
The CGA says that any consumer service you provide must meet four
specific guarantees.
These guarantees are:
- The work will be carried out with reasonable care and skill.
- The work will be fit for any particular purpose that the customer
has told you about.
- If the time for completing the work has not been agreed, the work
will be carried out within a reasonable time.
- If the price for the work has not been agreed, the price charged
will be a reasonable price for the work done.
Guarantee of reasonable skill and care:
Reasonable care and skill will be judged by looking at the care and
skill used by other competent people doing the same work. Your skills
should be such that you can do the job and achieve the purpose the
customer wanted. You should take the same care that other competent people
take to do the job well and avoid causing any damage.
Some examples of a lack of skill and care include:
- A plumber installs new guttering. The next time it rains part of the
guttering falls down.
- A drycleaner ruins a duvet by using the wrong method.
- A painter paints over flaking paint and six months later the new
paint starts to flake.
You can find out more about The Consumer
Guarantees Act and Fair Trading Act by visiting Business.govt.nz’s Consumer
Laws section.
