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An introduction
The ‘good employer’ legislation has borrowed from common law expectations of the duties of reasonable conduct and good faith between the parties and principles of natural justice and fairness. While the Employment Relations Act 2000 does not set out specific “good employer” requirements, one of the main objects of the Act is “to build productive employment relationships through the promotion of good faith” recognising that relationships are built on implied mutual obligations of trust and the requirement for good faith behaviour (S3). The Code of Good Faith for the Public Health Sector attached as a schedule to the Act (1B) specifically requires an employer in the public health sector to be a “good employer”.
The State Sector Act 1988
The State Services Commission summarises the “good employer” obligations in s.56 of the State Sector Act 1988 as:
“an employer who operates a personnel policy containing provisions generally accepted as necessary for the fair and proper treatment of employees in all aspects of their employment”.
Crown Entities Act 2004
Good employer obligations are extended to Crown entities through the Crown Entities Act which requires they operate personnel policies that comply with the principle of being a good employer. Among other things, this means operating a personnel policy containing provisions generally accepted as necessary for the fair and proper treatment of employees in all aspects of employment, including, but not limited to:
- recognising the employment requirements of women
- impartial selection of suitably qualified persons for appointment
- an equal employment opportunities (EEO) programme. An EEO programme aims to identify and eliminate all aspects of policies, procedures and other institutional barriers that cause or tend to cause or perpetuate inequality in employment in relation to any person or group of people.
Treasury guidelines
The Treasury Guidelines for Contracting with Non-Government Organisations for Services Sought by the Crown describe good employer practices as:
“Compliance with relevant employment relations and human rights legislation [11] as well as fair and ethical practices, such as:
- positive relationships with unions in the contractor’s trade or industry;
- participatory mechanisms for employees, in addition to participation in matters such as health and safety;
- observance of EEO principles and opportunities;
- work/life balance policies;
- provision of training and development opportunities; and
- ethics and integrity”
Links to ‘Good Employer’ information
Guidelines for Contracting with Non-Government Organisations for Services Sought by the Crown
The Good Employer Plan or Report
Legislation can be accessed on
http://www.legislation.govt.nz
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This page was last updated on:
08-Jun-2009
and is current.
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