Annual Leave Question

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BTR

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#208386 9-Feb-2017 17:29

Hi, I just wanted to ask here quickly but i will be talking to an employment lawyer.

Can an employer state in a contract that annual leave will not role over and that of your 4 weeks given you have to take two weeks at Christmas (That I understand) and the other two weeks during school holidays.

Can they really dictate when you take your annual leave that much?

I've had a look at employment.govt.nz but can't find an answer.

Thanks

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Blake R

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#1717796 9-Feb-2017 17:29

Yes I am sure they can

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garciahigh

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#1717805 9-Feb-2017 17:49

Can my employer tell me when to take my leave?

Your employer can force you to take leave at a particular time as long as they give you at least two weeks' notice.

However, it is common for employer and employee to come to an agreement about the timing of annual leave. If you put in a request for leave, your employer has to have a good reason to refuse it.

Can my employer force me to take annual leave between Christmas and New Year, or during that period?

Your employer can tell you when to take leave as long you are given two weeks’ notice.

If your office shuts down over Christmas and New Year then your employer can make you take your leave at that time, provided there is only one shut-down period per year.

For information about how your holiday pay is affected when your workplace has regular annual closedowns, refer to the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment website.

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BTR

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#1717806 9-Feb-2017 17:52

Awesome thank you, What about this line " The employee is not entitled to be paid for any overtime worked."

Journeyman

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#1717807 9-Feb-2017 17:55

BTR:

Awesome thank you, What about this line " The employee is not entitled to be paid for any overtime worked."

That's pretty standard these days. Sadly.

garciahigh

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#1717809 9-Feb-2017 17:56

BTR:

Awesome thank you, What about this line " The employee is not entitled to be paid for any overtime worked."

I'm pretty sure that's a common one for salaried employees, I'd be pretty worried if it said that in an employment agreement for a waged employee.

What type of job is this for?

Am I supposed to get extra money for working over-time?

If you are on an hourly wage, then you are paid for each hour worked – this means that you can expect to be paid for any extra hours you work over and above your “normal” work hours.

If you are on a salary, however, the amount you are paid is generally fixed (though it may change from year to year) even if you end up working more hours than are specified in your employment agreement. You may be able to negotiate an arrangement (if there isn’t one already), in which you are compensated with time off (also known as “time in lieu”) which is equivalent to the extra hours you work.

There are no legal requirements for paying overtime above the normal rate of pay unless this is stated in your employment agreement. That is for you and your boss to negotiate. If you feel you haven’t been compensated for your overtime hours then you should speak to your employer and make it clear you aren’t happy.

You can read more about over-time entitlements on the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s (MBIE’s) Employment New Zealand website, or for further help contact them on 0800 20 90 20.

Source: http://www.cab.org.nz/vat/eb/how/pages/hoursofworkandwages.aspx

timmmay

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#1717810 9-Feb-2017 17:56

Leave not rolling would be non-standard and fairly harsh. Is it legal? Ask a lawyer.

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garciahigh

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#1717812 9-Feb-2017 18:00

timmmay:

Leave not rolling would be non-standard and fairly harsh. Is it legal? Ask a lawyer.

They wouldn't be able to write off it, but they would be able to force you to take leave provided they give you 2 weeks notice.

Coil

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#1717819 9-Feb-2017 18:16

garciahigh:

timmmay:

Leave not rolling would be non-standard and fairly harsh. Is it legal? Ask a lawyer.

They wouldn't be able to write off it, but they would be able to force you to take leave provided they give you 2 weeks notice.

If an employer imposes this on an employee and the employer doesnt approve leave throughout the year and this period rolls on by and they are not given leave by request or forceful.
Will their annual leave balance be capped and roll over or be wiped?
Is that legal?

What ever the case, I wouldnt work for that company based on those two conditions you stated. If you want to work for them send the contract back and cross those 2 lines out. If your en existing employee id also do the same.

networkn

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#1717822 9-Feb-2017 18:21

Heh, do what I do at my company, make my staff take their annual leave in weekends and after hours!

Coil

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#1717824 9-Feb-2017 18:23

networkn:

Heh, do what I do at my company, make my staff take their annual leave in weekends and after hours!

Make them work on public holidays and give them that evening off in Lieu.

networkn

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#1717827 9-Feb-2017 18:27

That's brilliant, I have added it to our current contracts and activated them retrospectively.

Just need one more good idea and they will pay me to work here!

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minimoke

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#1717829 9-Feb-2017 18:37

BTR:

Awesome thank you, What about this line " The employee is not entitled to be paid for any overtime worked."

Theres a new amendment coming in 1 April It covers Availability provisions and a guaranteed agreed number of hours of work. If you work outside those hours there may be a requirement for reasonable compensation. I must look at this in more detail

minimoke

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#1717830 9-Feb-2017 18:40

BTR:

Hi, I just wanted to ask here quickly but i will be talking to an employment lawyer.

Can an employer state in a contract that annual leave will not role over and that of your 4 weeks given you have to take two weeks at Christmas (That I understand) and the other two weeks during school holidays.

Can they really dictate when you take your annual leave that much?

I've had a look at employment.govt.nz but can't find an answer.

Thanks

4 weeks only becomes an entitlement after 12 months work.

Employer entitled to one "closedown" a year during which annual leave can be taken.

Employee can ask permission to take annual leave but employer doesnt have to agree. Got to be reasonable grounds for saying no. Sounds like employer is pre-empting the "no"and giving you advance warning that anything outside school holidays isnt going to suit.

minimoke

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#1717833 9-Feb-2017 18:43

TimA:

networkn:

Heh, do what I do at my company, make my staff take their annual leave in weekends and after hours!

Make them work on public holidays and give them that evening off in Lieu.

Even better is to get them to work 1/4 hour. Pay them time 1 1/2 for that quarter hour saving yourself 7 3/4 hours at T1. and then the day off in lieu in the evening.

BlinkyBill

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#1717911 9-Feb-2017 20:36

minimoke:
BTR:

Hi, I just wanted to ask here quickly but i will be talking to an employment lawyer.

Can an employer state in a contract that annual leave will not role over and that of your 4 weeks given you have to take two weeks at Christmas (That I understand) and the other two weeks during school holidays.

Can they really dictate when you take your annual leave that much?

I've had a look at employment.govt.nz but can't find an answer.

Thanks

4 weeks only becomes an entitlement after 12 months work.

Employer entitled to one "closedown" a year during which annual leave can be taken.

Employee can ask permission to take annual leave but employer doesnt have to agree. Got to be reasonable grounds for saying no. Sounds like employer is pre-empting the "no"and giving you advance warning that anything outside school holidays isnt going to suit.

You are eligible for leave from day 1; you accumulate leave up to a minimum of four weeks over the first year. Then you can start taking leave. That is defined in the Holidays Act. It is possible to take leave in advance but this needs to be agreed to. You can accumulate leave, this needs to be agreed to.

The Holidays Act does say that if the workplace closes, at Christmas or any other time, then on 14 days notice the employee can be required to take annual leave, or leave without pay. If there is no closedown then the compulsion doesn't apply.

The Holidays Act does recognize that people have differing commitments for family reasons and what not. Requests for leave cannot be unreasonably withheld. It is unreasonable for an employer to stipulate when leave can be taken for the entire leave period. I am not an employment lawyer but I employ over 100 people - and I can say it is not reasonable to require leave to be taken only at specific times of the year other than during the closedown period if there is one.

The Holiday Act overrides any Employment Agreement, and in general specifically enforced leave at the employers sole discretion for the full four weeks would be laughed out of court. However, some industries, such as teaching, may have certain periods where the leave restrictions can validly apply.

Unless your prospective employer has a good reason for leave during school holidays only, then that employer is unreasonable. The Holidays Act does protect you, and confers rights.

Only waged staff attract overtime payment. Unless you can negotiate something specific.

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