Summary of Labour Inspectorate Investigation Report into Avtar Contracting Limited
Prepared: 23 February 2018
Introduction
The purpose of this summary report is to outline the findings of the Labour Inspectorate after an
investigation of Avtar Contracting Limited (“the employer”).
On 7 June 2017, an investigation of this employer was conducted as a result from a complaint from a
member of public in respect of the Employment Relations Act 2000, Minimum Wages Act 1983 and
the Holidays Act 2003.
The wages, time, holiday and leave records for the past six years from the date of the visit was
1982
requested for all employees.
Act
Based on the information provided and interviews with this employer, it manually completes
records, and relies on its key employees to record hours of work completed. The employer also has
relationships with its growers, who however separate themselves from employment matters in their
business relationship.
Summary of Findings
A visit was carried out on the 7 June 2017 at 214 Glenbrook/Waiuku Road. Six individuals identified
Information
Avtar Contracting Limited as their employer, and the Supervisor held a residence class visa, while the
others were found to be on visitor visas; another individual who named Avtar Contracting Limited, as
their employer, had no valid visa and was detained and deported by Immigration New Zealand. The
employer however claimed that those individuals were not employees, but were sight-seeing
Official
despite having a Supervisor on site that had transported those individuals from the Manurewa Sikh
Temple to the location.
the
The wages, time, holiday and leave records were analysed for the past six years from the date of the
visit. The Labour Inspector reviewed the records and out of the individuals located at 214
Glenbrook/Waiuku Road, the employer only had Individual employment agreements and the records
under
for the Supervisor.
Attempts were made by the Labour Inspector to contact those other individuals found at the
location on the 7 June 2017 without any response from them to verify information provided by the
employer about their presence at 214 Glenbrook/Waiuku Road.
From the information a
Released nd records provided by the employer, and the analysis undertaken, the
Inspectorate identified areas where the employer was non-compliant with the applicable legislation
below. The employer indicated to the Labour Inspector that it would no longer carry out seasonal
work for 2017 – 2018 and therefore no longer had any employees. The Inspectorate therefore
brought the failings to the employers attention should it choose to operate again in the future and
no enforcement action was taken.
The Inspector had the following findings in respect of the Employment Relations Act 2000:
These failings have only been identified for the wages and time records from December 2010 to
April 2016.
The applicable version of the Act is pre 1 April 2016:
• Section 130 (1) (c), relating to postal address
• Section 130 (1) (g), relating to hours employed on each day and the days of the employee’s
employment during each pay period
The following failing was identified from a sample of individual employment agreements and bought
to the employer’s attention given that it no longer had any employees:
1982
• Section 69OJ, relating to the mandatory requirement for collective and individual
employment agreements to include an employee protection provision. Act
The Inspector had the following findings in respect of the Minimum Wages Act 1983:
• No breaches identified.
The Inspector had the following findings in respect of the Holidays Act 2003:
• Section 81 (c), relating to the number of hours worked each day in a pay period and the pay
Information
for those hours.
The employer was found to be compliant with the following:
• Section 49, relating to payment for public holidays on otherwise working days for the
Official
employee
• Section 50, relating to the requirement to pay employees on time and a half for working on
the
public holidays
• Section 56, relating to the entitlement to an alternative holiday if the employee worked on a
public holiday that was an otherwise working day
•
under
Section 60, relating to payment for alternative holidays.
Released
