Kia ora Erika Whittome,
 
On behalf of the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment I
acknowledge your email of 22/01/2026 requesting, under the Official
Information Act 1982, the following:
 
This is an information request to the employment relations authority. The
era comes under MBIE

Please share all information you hold either at the ERA or that has been
sent to you in briefs, emails, correspondence, memos, briefings,
ministerial briefings, meeting minutes etc that cover mitigating the risk
of bias at the ERA regarding vaccination and employment given MBIE had a
central role in promoting the government Covid 19 response and Covid 19
vaccination policies for workplaces.

I refer you to what employer court Judge Corkill said in 2022 “VMR v
Aviation Security Service Division of Civil Aviation…”( [2022] NZEmpC 127)
“ [76] Given that conclusion, it is not strictly necessary to consider the
contention that there would be a perception of bias were the Authority to
hear the case, since MBIE, which administers and operates the Authority,
also had a central role in developing and promoting the Government's
COVID-19 response, including its vaccination policy.”

This information request is for anything from 1 Jan 2022 until the present
day

I assume any bias would have been considered so that there is trust in the
ERA in employment relationship problems regarding objections to Covid 19
vaccinations.
 
We will endeavour to respond to your request as soon as possible, and no
later than 20/02/2026, being 20 working days after the day your request
was received. If we are unable to respond to your request by then, we will
notify you of an extension of that timeframe. If you have any enquiries
regarding your request feel free to contact us via email to
[1][MBIE request email].
 
Nāku noa, nā
Ministerial Services
Strategy and Assurance
Ministry of Business, Innovation & Employment
15 Stout Street, Wellington 6011 |  P O Box 1473 Wellington 6140

References

Visible links
1. mailto:[MBIE request email]

Kia ora 
 
Please see attached our response to your request for information under the
Official Information Act 1982.

Ngā mihi nui,

Ministerial Services
Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment

15 Stout Street, Wellington 6011 | PO Box 1473, Wellington 6140
 

Mōrena Erika

 

Thank you for your follow up question regarding this request. Thank you
for your patience in waiting for a response from us.

 

As per Section 222 of the Employment Relations Act 2000, MBIE is unable to
provide further information to you. You can view this section here online
- [1]Employment Relations Act 2000 No 24 (as at 13 November 2025), Public
Act 222 Application of Official Information Act 1982 – New Zealand
Legislation. 

 

I apologise we are unable to assist you further in relation to this
information request.

 

Ngā mihi nui

MINISTERIAL SERVICES

 

------------------- Original Message -------------------
From: Erika Whittome <[2][FOI #33581 email]>; 
Received: Fri Jan 30 2026 17:06:18 GMT+1300 (New Zealand Daylight Time)
To: Ministerials MBIE <[3][email address]>; 
Subject: Re: DOIA-REQ-0026452-Erika Whittome Response CRM:0310669

Dear Ministerials,
The response from the ERA is about exclusion of the OIA to 'the Authority
or the court in relation to any proceedings brought before the Authority
or the court'

Would you kindly transfer this request for information regarding the
Mitigation of Bias at the ERA back to MBIE please?

Yours sincerely,

Erika Whittome

-----Original Message-----

Kia ora 
  
 Please see attached our response to your request for information under
the
 Official Information Act 1982.

 Ngā mihi nui,

 Ministerial Services
 Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment

 15 Stout Street, Wellington 6011 | PO Box 1473, Wellington 6140
  

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References

Visible links
1. https://www.legislation.govt.nz/act/publ...
2. mailto:[FOI #33581 email]
3. mailto:[email address]
4. mailto:[FOI #33581 email]
5. https://fyi.org.nz/help/officers

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