Tuesday, 01 May 2012 11:15

Keep good employment records

Written by 

LAWYERS DEALING with employment issues often advise employer clients that having no document is better than having a bad document. But this general advice doesn’t ring true for the requirements placed on employers to collect and retain employee time, wage, holiday and leave records.  

Wage and time records

There are no fewer than 10 distinct requirements for wage and time records, including recording the age of the employee (if under 20 years of age), the type of employment agreement the employee is employed on (individual or collective), the hours worked each day (including start time, finish time and any non-paid breaks taken) and the days of employment in each pay period.

Holidays and sick leave

When it comes to recording holidays and sick leave, the list is even more onerous. By law, holiday and leave records must include the days on which an employee works, the date the employee last became entitled to annual holidays, current entitlements to annual holidays and sick leave, and the dates and amount of payment for any annual holiday, sick or bereavement leave taken.  Also needed are the dates of and payment for any public holiday worked, the number of hours worked on any public holiday and the day, or part of any public holiday agreed to be transferred, and the day to which it has been transferred.

Responsibility cannot be delegated

Employers commonly instruct and rely on a senior employee or manager to collect and retain such records.  It is imperative for employers to understand that where the senior employee or manager fails in that regard, it is no defence for the employer not meeting its legal obligations.  

We have seen a number of these instances in a farming context - whether it is, for example, the accounts person responsible for collecting the information or the farm manager’s responsibility.  Irrespectively, the employer is held liable for the accounts person or farm manager’s failure to keep accurate records.

• Adam Gallagher and Summer Pringle are employment law specialists at Duncan Cotterill Lawyers. www.DuncanCotterill.com. 

Featured

MPI: Primary sector exports hit record $60B

A blockbuster year and an exciting performance: that's how Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Director General, Ray Smith is describing the massive upsurge in the fortunes of the primary sector exports for the year ended June 2025.

Top innovators announced

The Fieldays Innovation Award winners have been announced with Auckland’s Ruminant Biotech taking out the Prototype Award.

National

Machinery & Products

Calf feeding boost

Advantage Plastics says it is revolutionising calf meal storage and handling, making farm life easier, safer, and more efficient this…

JD's precision essentials

Farmers across New Zealand are renowned for their productivity and efficiency, always wanting to do more with less, while getting…

» Latest Print Issues Online

The Hound

Are they serious?

OPINION: The Greens aren’t serious people when it comes to the economy, so let’s not spend too much on their…

A hurry up!

OPINION: PM Chris Luxon is getting pinged lately for rolling out the old 'we're still a new government' line when…

» Connect with Rural News

» eNewsletter

Subscribe to our weekly newsletter