Editorial: Goodbye 2024
OPINION: In two weeks we'll bid farewell to 2024. Dubbed by some as the toughest season in a generation, many farmers would be happy to put the year behind them.
It's important to know what you are entitled to, because good people are needed in farming and the industry is keen to keep the good sorts. So, here are the basics of employment.
Getting paid
Let's cover the important one first. If you're working, you want to get paid. Plus it's reasonable to be paid fairly for your work, depending on your skills, work experience and the tasks you have to do. This means:
◦ You should get paid minimum wage or above for all the hours you work.
◦ You don't normally get paid for unpaid meal breaks like breakfast and lunch.
◦ You have a formal agreement for accommodation, if it's provided, and the accommodation is in good condition.
◦ You may also have other benefits (e.g. free firewood) as part of your employment agreement.
Note that in the dairy industry it's common to calculate pay based on 'seasonal averaging'. This means some employers average out pay across a 12 month period, because traditionally more hours are worked during calving than in the low season.
This is fine, provided you are not paid less than the minimum wage in any given pay period or fortnight. For example, on your timesheet if you worked 120 hours over a two-week period and your salary is $45,000 you are entitled to a top-up payment so you earn at least minimum wage during this time.
This is because a $45,000 salary ÷ 26 weeks ÷ 120 hours per fortnight is an hourly rate of $14.42 per hour. The minimum wage is currently $14.75 per hour so you should be topped up $39.60 ($14.75 - $14.42 = $0.33 and $0.33 x 120 hours = $39.60).
Keep up-to-date with the current minimum wage by visiting http://employment.govt.nz/er/pay/minimumwage/
Accommodation
If provided with a place to live on the farm, you will normally enter into a 'service tenancy' agreement. This basically means you are renting that house only because of your work. A lot of employers now separate accommodation from pay, to make it easy.
This is done in two steps:
◦ Fair pay (at market rate) is salary or wages provided for work.
◦ Fair rent (at market rate) is payment for the accommodation.
In this case, the only way your pay and accommodation are linked is if you allow your employer to deduct rent directly from your pay (and because of the service tenancy agreement).
If your accommodation arrangement is done differently and you aren't sure of the maths, ask your employer to talk you through it so that you understand how your pay is calculated.
Employment agreements
You should have signed a written contract (an employment agreement) before you started the job.
This sets out in writing what the agreement is between you and the employer. It tells you what hours you need to work, what jobs you have to do, what leave you can take, etc. Keep it somewhere safe so you can look up anything you're not sure of in future.
If you are employed on a fixed term agreement, this means you are only employed for a set amount of time (e.g. due to a project or parental leave cover).
You should expect this work to end on the date it says in your agreement.
If employed on a casual agreement, you should only be asked to work as required and should not expect any regular work. When asked to work, you have the right to say 'yes' or 'no' to the work, depending on whether or not you are available.
If you have any questions about your employment agreement or there are things you don't understand, ask your employer or visit www.ers.dol.govt.nz.
Timesheets
To get paid, you normally need to record the hours you work on a timesheet. Be honest! You should only record the actual hours you work. Take off any hours you don't work, such as lunchtime.
The timesheets are normally given to your employer and it's a good idea to keep a record of the hours you work on a calendar, in a diary or on your phone.
Your employer should also be keeping records of all the hours you work, your pay and your leave/holidays.
Leave
Check your employment agreement for the leave you are allowed to take. You should be entitled to a minimum of:
◦ Four weeks annual leave each year (after 12 months continuous service).
◦ Five days sick leave each year (after six months continuous service).
◦ Up to 11 public holidays (depending on your roster).
◦ Bereavement leave (after six months continuous service).
More information about leave is available at www.dairynz.co.nz or http://employment.govt.nz/er/holidaysandleave/index.asp
Keeping safe
It's important to keep safe at work and this is your responsibility. You also have a responsibility to make sure you don't injure other people at your work. It's all about being safe rather than sorry! To keep safe at work, you must:
◦ Always use personal protective equipment (PPE) provided by your employer (e.g. helmets).
◦ Not use drugs or alcohol at work.
◦ Report any hazards that could injure someone (e.g. dangerous equipment, slippery surfaces, chemicals without lids, damaged electrical leads, broken fences at the effluent pond, etc.).
◦ Report any 'incidents' or 'close-calls' to your employer.
◦ Be constantly aware of dangers in your work environment.
◦ Stick to the safety rules on the farm.
◦ Contribute to planning for safety and wellbeing in the team.
Your employer also has responsibilities to ensure the farm is generally a safe workplace. In general, you must do what your employer tells you to do as they will normally have your safety in mind. However, you should also speak up if you don't want to do something because you think it's unsafe. To find out more about safety on farms, visit www.saferfarms.org.nz.
Rosters
Because of the different seasons in dairy work, you will sometimes need to work long hours and work hard. However, the best farms to work on offer a range of tasks, allow reasonable time off for your personal life and know the dangers of exhausted staff.
A well-designed farm roster means that you are normally:
◦ Not likely to work more than 50 hours a week
◦ Not likely to work more than 10 hours a day
◦ Not likely to work more than four hours in any day before a break is taken
◦ Given regular days off (at least two days in a row).
Planning for your future
If you're keen to work in the dairy industry for a while, ask your employer for advice on what jobs you could do in future and start thinking about building your career. Traditionally, farming has been a job where you start at the bottom and work up. Even if farm ownership isn't possible, a good career in dairying could turn out to be just the right thing for you.
More information
If you have any questions or concerns about the set-up of your employment, raise the query with your employer in the first instance. More information about employment basics is available at www.dairynz.co.nz.
You can also join the Workplace Action Plan which is a project designed to improve dairy farms so they are great places to work. You can find more information, show your support and contribute by visiting www.dairynz.co.nz/wap. Become a friend of the Workplace Action Plan.
