union access rights confirmed

A recent decision by the Employment Court has confirmed that employers cannot require union officials who enter their workplace to speak with staff individually. In Terry Young Limited v NZ Engineering, Printing and Manufacturing Union Incorporated the Court considered an appeal against an earlier Employment Relations determination. The Court upheld the Employment Relations Authority view that the right of access under Section 20 of the Act encompassed individual and collective discussions. However this ruling does not give unions the right to hold full staff meetings. Unions wishing to enter workplaces must do so at reasonable times during the period when employees are employed and the right to enter must be exercised in a reasonable way having regard to normal business operations. By the 2004 amendments to the Employment Relations Act 2000 Parliament also provided that any discussion must not exceed a reasonable duration. Care must also be taken to comply with existing reasonable health and safety and security procedures.

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