PrintEmail

With an influx of tourists to New Zealand during Rugby World Cup 2011 there is likely to be an increase in opportunities for temporary work in the hospitality, retail and security sectors.

If you are likely to need workers during the RWC 2011 or you are looking to increase the hours of your existing staff during the event there are a few things that you need to know.

Right to Work

Employers are required by law to ensure that anyone they are employing has the legal right to work in New Zealand. A tax code declaration IR330 form is no longer a reasonable excuse for employing someone who is not entitled to work here. Employing someone who is not entitled to work here may incur a fine of up to $50,000 - so an employer needs to check a job seeker’s passport and take a copy of their work visa.  Immigration New Zealand has a free service where you can check a potential employee’s entitlement to work here.

Employing casual staff or using fixed term agreements

All employees, including casual employeesand those on fixed term agreementsare entitled to the same minimum employment rights as other employees.

Many employees who are described as “casual” are part-time employees whose future employment is actually clear – for example, supermarket or hospitality employees whose work pattern is established on a fortnightly roster. Casual employees are those whose employment is triggered by an event that cannot be accurately anticipated with no expectation of ongoing employment beyond the event, or whose work pattern can be described as so irregular or intermittent. Because a casual employee’s employment is so irregular or intermittent that it is not feasible to provide for four weeks’ annual leave, the employee can be offered holiday pay on a “pay as you go” basis. This needs to be explicitly provided for in the employment agreement, and the payment must be recorded separately in wage records at a rate of at least 8%.

Another option for employing staff over the RWC period is using fixed term agreements. Employers can offer fixed-term employment if:

• there are genuine reasons - like seasonal work, project work, or where the employee is employed only for the duration of the RWC tournament
   
• the employer tells the employee the reasons, how or when the employment will end, and the employee agrees to this in their employment agreement.

Where the fixed-term agreement is for less than 12 months, the employment agreement can state that annual holiday pay can be made  on a “pay as you go basis” as described above and if the employee agrees. To find out more about pay as you go arrangements visit ….