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All The Right Reasons For Hiring A North Shore Employment Lawyer

Hiring an employment lawyer is probably the last thing on any entrepreneur’s mind as they go about building their business. But if you have started a company on Auckland’s North Shore with an eye out for expanding your business, then you will definitely want to hire a North Shore employment lawyer. Why? For the reasons you will see below.

We know what you are thinking. Why hire a lawyer when you can hire a human resource specialist, right? However, the truth of the matter is that the employment laws are constantly changing, and even the best HR consultants have a hard time keeping up. Wouldn’t you want to hire someone who knows about the legal not just the practical aspects pertaining to NZ employment laws inside out?

But aside from keeping yourself up-to-date on employment law updates, a lawyer who specialises in employment laws can help protect you from legal claims as you are hiring key employees. Key employees require special contracts – you will want to have a contract that would be beneficial for you and the employee, and the only way that you can do that is by hiring a lawyer who crafts employee contracts for a living.

How Can North Shore Employment Lawyer Help You?

North Shore employment lawyer

North Shore employment lawyer

If you are the subject of a legal claim because of unlawful dismissal, discrimination or any other legal reason, you simply cannot rely on your human resource manager to minimise the damage to your business, not unless if that HR manager is a lawyer too . An employment lawyer can competently analyse the merits of a case lodged against you and dispense sound legal advice that can extricate you from legal trouble.

The good thing about employment lawyers is that they are easy enough to find. You can easily find them on Google. Of course, you don’t just hire the first lawyer you see online. You need to vet at least three lawyers before hiring one.

Among the most experience North Shore employment lawyers are the specialist staff at McVeagh Fleming.

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Dismissing An Employee Lawfully in Albany, Auckland

If you are planning to dismiss an employee, it must be done lawfully and under specific conditions. In order for this dismissal to be lawful it must be substantively justified and it needs to be done in a procedurally fair way. Failure to do so can leave the employer exposed to legal action. Always seek qualified legal advice.

Employment lawyers Albany

You are sacked – image stockimages

There must be a valid reason for a dismissal. It must be done in a fair manner and it will be dependent upon the circumstances. Example: If the employer dismisses the employee without a warning it must fall within specific parameters that are fully detailed out and understood at the time of hire.

If the employer has given a warning or has dismissed an employee unlawfully, the employee can file a personal grievance claim to the Employment Relations Authority (a part of the NZ Dept of Labour). Employees can be given lost wages as well as distress damages as compensation upon a successful outcome of such a procedure for the employee.

How to defend an employer from a personal grievance that has been brought by an employee.

Employment Relations can give the necessary information and mediation services in order to help assist the employment problem. You can reach them at 0800 800 863. For a claim to be justified, the employer must have a valid reason for dismissal. This valid reason should always be in writing and copies kept in the employee file as well as in the employer file. These requirements will vary depending upon the specific circumstances. If the employee is dismissed without warning it may only be done under a specific set of parameters and guidelines.

A summary dismissal must be for serious misconduct and justified. An employee may be dismissed without warning as long as these parameters are followed. Here is a list of some of those parameters.

Theft

Act of Dishonesty

Fighting

Assault of another employee

Assault of employer

Breach of conduct

Disobeying a law

Disobeying instruction directly from the employer

Possession of illegal substances while at work

Even if the employee is dismissed for such reasons, they are still entitled to their outstanding wages. This includes holiday pay as entitled under their contract.

Poor Work Performance or Less Serious Misconduct

The grounds for this action are poor work performance or a less serious form of misconduct. Without previous warnings, the employer does not have the right to dismiss the employee. The typical procedure is to give an oral warning and then to give a written formal warning. After a final third written formal warning then the employee may be let go without further discussion should the employee again fall short of their duties within the company.

General Rules of Fair Procedures in Dismissing an Employee

Employers are required to take the following measures to make sure that the dismissal is fair. These apply no matter which type of dismissal is being made.

Carry out full investigation into the behaviour that is alleged of the employee including all details and witnesses.

Inform the employee of the nature of the allegations and when appropriate, of the possibility of dismissal due to the disciplinary procedure.

The employee should have the benefit of being heard.

Employees have the right to have a support person or employment lawyer present at the time of the hearing.

Unless the offense is a summary dismissal, the employee has to be warned and requested to stop said behaviour and given appropriate time to improve upon their behaviour before such dismissal. Employee should have assistance as required to change said behavior. If training is required it shall be given. After an oral warning, a formal warning in writing and final formal written warning, employee may be dismissed as the fourth and final warning.

Employment lawyer Albany

Lawyer for dimissing staff – image imagerymajestic

The employee should have the reasons laid out clearly regarding the decisions for dismissal so that they can understand why and recognise that they did indeed have time to change the outcome.

This should be done prior to the dismissal. An employee should have 60 days before dismissal to change their behaviour. They may also require a written statement of reasons and it shall be given within 14 days of the request.

All dismissals shall be done in writing.

Employees may be suspended with full pay pending the results of such an investigation and disciplinary process.

A word of warning about dismissing an employee

Employment law is very complex and needs to be followed exactly as the law states. If there is any deviation, even with the best of intention, then the employer can be liable for wrongful dismissal. So before you undertake any action to dismiss an employee, you are strongly advised to talk to an employment lawyer first.

For employers on the North Shore, McVeagh Fleming is one of the biggest employment lawyers in Albany. They have lots of experience in this regard. Talk to them or visit their website for details.

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imagerymajesticIf you feel like you’re being victimised at work, you need some help to figure out what to do about it. Here you’ll get the help you need with this because you’ll get some tips to help you out. It can be hard to deal with, but with the right information you’ll do just fine.

You need to figure out who you can talk to about this kind of behaviour at work. If someone is victimising you and they are report to a manager, then you need to tell the manager around their behaviour and they need to put a stop to it right away. If the person victimizing you is the manager or someone higher up and you can’t get to a higher up person to tell on them, then you need to take it to someone like a lawyer. Don’t allow this to keep happening and find someone that can help you right away.

stockimagesDon’t be afraid of losing your job even if the person doing bad things to you is your boss. You shouldn’t have to deal with this kind of thing where you work or anywhere you go in life. This is something you need to take your time with to get things taken care of so that you don’t have to be bullied around all the time when you’re at your work place or anywhere else you go. If you lose your job then you can get the company taken to court where you can get your lost wages back if you win.

Tell the person that’s messing with you to stop or that you will go to someone higher up to report their behaviour. Sometimes all people need is a reminder that their behaviour is bothering you so that they can change the way they do things when you’re around. This is something you really need to work with people on because otherwise they may not ever know that the way they act is not appropriate. See if you can tell a manager to set up a meeting where they go over what’s not appropriate when it comes to actions in the workplace.

Keep a record of when you get victimised and use that as evidence if you have to take the employer to court or you need to show a manager what’s going on. The more detailed you can be, the better of a chance you have at getting things to stop. You need to be honest and not lie about anything that’s going on so that you don’t have to make things up. Never try to exaggerate because if you do that then it’s going to be very hard for you to keep lying when you have to tell your story to multiple people.

Stay patient when dealing with this kind of thing at your job because it may take some time for you to get someone to take action. Keep on top of things and make sure you’re keeping track of everything that’s going on when it comes to the behaviour of others in the workplace. You’ll want to make sure you bring everything up that bothers you with someone quickly, and you’ll need to stay patient as they deal with things for you. No person should feel victimized for long, so try to get help as soon as it happens.

Now you’re aware of what you can do when you’re dealing with victimisation at work. This is going to be a little tough to deal with, but in the end you can be sure that things will get better.

Often the hardest step is accepting that you are being victimized. Once you have come to terms with that then you can take steps to overcome it.

Contacting a law firm in your area is a good step. They will be able to provide you with some good advice to start with. And if necessary, they will be able to contact your employer on your behalf.

However, employment law is one of the most difficult areas of law in NZ and is something that few local law firms are able to handle. Your local lawyer will be able to refer you to a specialist or otherwise you can go to a firm which does have employment lawyers on their staff.

On the North Shore, McVeagh Fleming & Co is one of the best firm of lawyers in the area. They also have employment lawyers who deal in employment law matters and so they can help you with your problem. Their website is here.

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imagerymajesticBullying is traditionally associated with high school and the teenagers’ behaviours. However, bullying is still present in the workplace. Bullying in the workplace takes many different forms but it should be recognised for what it is. And more importantly, it should not be tolerated.

You need to take action right away if you are a victim of bullying at work or feel that some of your colleagues are being bullied. The best thing to do is to go to a supervisor to inform them of the situation. If your superiors are responsible for the bullying or choose to look the other way, there are a few cases in which you can take legal action against them. For instance, you could report harassment or violence but you are not protected by law against a generally hostile work environment.

Did you know that New Zealand is one of the worst countries in the developed world for people being bullied in the workplace? According to a research finding in 2010 over 20% of Kiwis claimed they were bullied at work. Legal action is not taken in most cases and most employers simply do not know how to deal with bullies. You should know that you are not alone if you are dealing with bullying. You should also know that the bullying is not your fault. A lot of bullied people tend to think that they deserve to be treated that way and decide not to take action.

If you cannot do anything from a legal point of view against your bullies, the best thing you can do is get some help from people in the same situation. If there are a few bullies in your workplace, chances are you are not the only one who is mistreated by them. Pay attention to the way employees interact with each other. If someone does not seem to fit in or always look depressed, they are probably encountering bullying as well. Talk to them and let them know you are dealing with the same thing.

You should also talk to your supervisor, HR representative or to a SONY DSCworkplace counselor if you have one. HR representatives and supervisors do not always respond to workplace bullying in an efficient manner but it does not hurt to draw their attention to this issue. A workplace counselor can help you adopt the right attitude to face your bullies.

If you cannot get any help from your colleagues or supervisors, you should know there are plenty of resources available to you online. Connecting with people in a similar situation through message boards will give you an opportunity to share your experience. Knowing that you are not the only one dealing with bullying should make things easier and give you the courage you need to stand up to your bullies.

Confronting your bullies is not easy but it is your best option if your supervisors are looking the other way. You should not confront your bullies in a violent manner. Refuse to comply the next time they bully you into doing something or let them know you are not scared of their threats. Most bullies back out very quickly when faced with someone who is ready to stand up to them. If you are not comfortable with facing your bullies alone, ask some of the other bullied employees to help you.

Being bullied in the workplace is a very unpleasant experience and makes work a lot more stressful than it should be. You should speak up about your situation and stand up to your bullies.

In New Zealand people are protected by law under The Human Rights Act. This means that companies must create a secure workplace for their staff. This includes not only physical hazards as a result of the type of work but also reducing exposure to psychological harm.

If you are being bullied or someone you know is suffering, then talk to your HR people in the first instance. If that does not provide a solution for you then you are at liberty to seek legal redress. Employment law is strong in NZ so you may have some powerful legal support on your side. Look for an employment lawyer in Albany and they will be able to give you advice on the merits of your case. McVeagh Fleming is one of the most respected law firms in the area. You can find out more about them here.