Blenheim vineyard contractor fined for labour law failures

3 December 2015

Blenheim vineyard contractor fined for labour law failures

The Employment Relations Authority (ERA) has ordered KRSVP Ltd (formerly S & LJ Prasad Ltd) of Blenheim to pay more than $7,500 in penalties for failing to provide employment records requested by a Labour Inspector.

The labour contracting company came under scrutiny by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment’s Labour Inspectorate during a vineyard audit conducted together with Immigration New Zealand and Inland Revenue. The purpose of the audit was to check for compliance with employment, immigration and tax laws.

An investigation by the Inspectorate found KRSVP Ltd was not providing individual employment agreements with all mandatory provisions and failing to produce wage and time records for employees working at Cable Bay Wine in Marlborough.

The case was brought before the ERA when the employer failed to comply with the Improvement Notice issued by the Labour Inspector, asking to provide the documents required by law.

The employer also tried to deny employing the workers and told the Inspector he was going out of business. Instead, the company had a recent name change from S & LJ Prasad Ltd to KRSVP Ltd. The ERA determination suggests this means the business remains active and is unlikely to be going into liquidation. The ERA determined $7,500 is to be paid as a penalty for the breaches.

Labour Inspectorate Regional Manager Kevin Finnegan says failure to comply with the minimum employment standards will not be tolerated.

“Employment records are a basic legal requirement. Without them employers cannot demonstrate they are providing workers with entitlements such as minimum wage and correct holiday pay.

“Failure to comply with employment laws not only harms the workers but also the industry’s reputation. Businesses should make sure the suppliers they use are compliant and not exploiting workers,” says Mr Finnegan.

Employers who breach the employment law will be subject to enforcement action which can include penalties of up to $10,000 for individuals and $20,000 for companies.

The Ministry encourages anyone in this situation, or who knows of anyone in this situation, to call its contact centre on 0800 20 90 20 where their concerns will be handled in a safe environment.

The ERA determination is available here: http://employment.govt.nz/workplace/determinations/PDF/2015/2015_NZERA_Christchurch_176.pdf

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