Former NZ Post staff may be eligible for back-pay

NZ Post is reaching out to former employees, so the company can check if people might be owed additional holiday pay.

This follows an audit by the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment in 2016 when it identified that NZ Post was one of many New Zealand organisations needing to change the way it calculates leave and holiday pay to fully line up with the Holidays Act 2003.

Chief Financial Officer, Michael Boersen, says, “Anyone that worked at NZ Post between 10 May 2010 and today may be entitled to a back payment. We’ve written to 17,000 former employees and asked them to register their details at our portal so we can keep in touch as we work through the calculations.”

Around 22,000 NZ Post staff may be affected and NZ Post is setting $38 million aside for this work.

“It’s too early to say who exactly may be impacted, but some scenarios that typically result in underpayments are those employees who earn regular overtime or have a variable pattern of work. We’ll be able to confirm with individuals who register, and start the back payments from July 2020,” says Mr Boersen.

NZ Post is working with unions Etū and Postal Workers Union of Aotearoa to find a solution and contact former employees.

Negotiation Specialist at Etū, Joe Gallagher, says, “We’re helping NZ Post to get in touch with former employees. NZ Post has written to their last known address, but as it dates back to 2010, many people’s details may be out of date. So we’re doing all we can to contact them, and urge Kiwis who know any former NZ Post employees to tell them about registering their details at the portal.”

The Postal Workers Union of Aotearoa (PWUA) is also involved with finding a solution and assisting NZ Post. Gerard Hehir, National Secretary of Unite Union has been working with the PWUA on the issue, “NZ Post has gone through many changes over the last decade and we believe many members were in roles that may qualify for back payments. All parties are agreed that significant backpay is owed and needs to be repaid. Anyone who worked for NZ Post since 2010 needs to register to make sure they receive what they are entitled to.”

Former employees should register at holidaysactinfo.nzpost.co.nz so NZ Post can keep them updated on progress.

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