The
statutory minimum wage applies even if an employee is paid partly or wholly
by commission or by piece rate. It applies to all types of jobs and
employees, including homeworkers, casual, temporary and part-time employees.
MINIMUM
WAGE
EXEMPTIONS
An
exemption from the minimum wage lets a person work for less than the minimum
wage. Labour Inspectors can grant an exemption to a person with a recognised
disability that significantly slows his or her work and makes him or her
incapable of earning the minimum wage.
BOARD
AND LODGING
If
an employee is provided with board and lodging, a deduction of 15% for board
and 5% for lodging can be made.
ENFORCING
THE MINIMUM WAGE
Any
employee who is being paid less than the minimum rate in the Minimum Wage
Act can make a complaint to a Labour
Inspector.
The
Labour Inspector may investigate such a complaint and act to recover any
money owing to the employee.
Employees
or their representatives can also enforce the minimum wage themselves, by
seeking mediation
assistance, or, if that fails, going to the Employment
Relations Authority.
E
QUAL
PAY- BY LAW
An
employer cannot pay men and women different pay rates for doing the same or
substantially similar work if the only difference is their sex (Equal Pay
Act 1972).
In
addition, under the Human
Rights Act 1993, an employer cannot discriminate in hiring or firing,
training or promoting because of the employee's colour, race, ethnic or
national origins, sex (including pregnancy or childbirth status), marital or
family status, age, disability, religious or ethical belief, political
opinion, employment status, or sexual orientation.
Under
the Employment Relations Act, employers cannot discriminate on those same
grounds or on the grounds that a person has been involved in union
activities, in relation to terms of employment, conditions of work, fringe
benefits, opportunities for training, promotion or transfer, dismissal,
retirement, or by subjecting an employee to detriment.
WAGES- BY
AGREEMENT
If
there is no
collective agreement that covers the situation, employers and employees
aged 16 years or more can agree to any rate of pay in their employment
agreement, as long as it is equal to, or better than, the statutory
minimum wage.
Employers
and unions or employees may agree to a range of payments, for example,
performance bonuses or different rates of pay for working overtime.
WAGES
AND TIME
RECORDS
Employers
must keep wages and time records for each employee, for six years. Employees
and their representatives have the right to see these.
These
records must include the following information:
- the
employee's name
- the
employee's age, if under 20 years
- the
employee's postal address
- the
type of work the employee undertakes
- the
type of employment agreement, individual or collective
- the
title, expiry date and employee classification in any applicable
collective agreement
- where
payment is calculated by the hour, the hours and days of employment in
each pay period
- the
wages paid each pay day
- details
of employment relations leave taken
- details
of annual leave taken
- details
of statutory holidays worked and days in lieu provided
- details
of salary deductions, such as PAYE and agreed superannuation
contributions.
Employers
have obligations to keep holiday records. These may be kept as part of the
wages and time records.
RECOVERING
MONEY OWED BY YOUR EMPLOYER
If
an employer does not pay all wages, allowances or other money that have been
agreed to in an employment agreement, the employee (or the employee's union
or other representative) can go to the Employment Relations Authority to ask
for any money that is owed to the employee (after following the problem-solving
procedure). The Authority will hear wages claims dating back six years.
(Note that claims arising from events before 2 October 2000 will be dealt
with under the provisions of the Employment
Contracts Act 1991).
Employees
can also ask the Authority to order the employer to comply in future with
agreed conditions of employment, including pay rates.
BUSINESS
IN RECEIVERSHIP AND WAGES OWING
Sometimes
a business may go into receivership with wages and holiday pay owing to
employees. When a business is in receivership, its debts are ranked in order
of priority as set out by law. Wages and holiday pay have a high priority
after secured debts such as mortgages.
Employees
should take their claim for any outstanding wages or holiday pay to the
receiver - that is, the person appointed to manage the employer's business
affairs.
Any
dispute about whether a claim is valid may need to be decided by the Employment
Relations Authority.
PERSONAL
LIABILITY
If
a Labour Inspector is taking a case to the Authority to recover minimum
wages or holiday pay from an employer that is a company, the Authority may
authorise the action to be brought personally against a director, officer or
agent of that company. However, the Authority can only authorise such an
action if both: