ALWU’s first campaign relates to remunerating workers for overtime and ensuring compliance with the Minimum Wage Act 1983. This campaign arose from multiple self reports to ALWU from legal workers who were concerned they were working for less than the minimum wage when comparing their hours worked to salary levels.
The campaign was also driven by the other key requirement of minimum wage law that is often overlooked when dealing with salaried workers: the requirement in s 4B of the Employment Relations Act 2000 for employers to keep records “in sufficient detail to demonstrate that the employer has complied with minimum entitlement provisions”. As many legal employers focus only on accurately recording all billable hours, ALWU’s focus in this area was on educating employers and employees alike about the definition of “work” and the importance of recording all hours worked, whether billable or not.
ALWU’s minimum wage campaign has involved several phases, including information gathering, education, outreach to employers, advocacy for members and drafting compliance documentation. You can read more about each phase of the campaign below, and more detailed information about minimum wage law here.
Phase 1: Publicising the issue
As a starting point, ALWU sought to put a spotlight on the issues raised by its members and gauge the public reaction of employers. You may have seen Alison Mau’s article in June 2019: “Lawyers are working for ‘less than minimum wage’, new union claims“. With ALWU’s support, Alison asked all 15 of New Zealand’s biggest firms how they are ensuring that they are paying their employees a minimum wage. Their responses can be viewed through this link.
ALWU was not satisfied by the firms’ responses. They indicated that most firms are not monitoring the hours their employees work, and are not remunerating them for those hours in accordance with the Minimum Wage Act. ALWU’s full response is available here.
Phase 2: Employment Information Survey
ALWU needed a clearer picture of the form and seriousness of breaches across different legal workplaces. Accordingly, ALWU conducted a survey of legal workers asking a range of questions about working conditions, including questions about hours worked, pay and bonuses, job satisfaction and whether respondents thought they had been paid below the minimum wage based on their hours worked and salary.
ALWU published the results of its Employment Information Survey on 14 November 2019. You can read the report here, which was covered by Alison Mau in an article for Stuff as well as a range of other news outlets, including the Law Society.
Phase 3: Meeting with employers and stakeholders
While ALWU was seeking feedback and insight from members, it also wanted to engage one-on-one with employers and hear their perspectives. ALWU had initial meetings with the largest 15 law firms in Aotearoa and discussed compliance, record-keeping and potential solutions. ALWU has established good relationships with a range of employers, and continues to meet with employers to discuss progress and monitor compliance.
ALWU also met with and continues to engage with employment and union law experts, the Labour Inspectorate, WorkSafe, the Law Society, representative groups and other stakeholders to ensure ALWU understood a range of perspectives and the underlying legal and regulatory issues. These relationships are now established, and ALWU looks forward to being involved in several conversations around change and progress in legal workplaces in the months to come.
ALWU also began to roll out employee-only information sessions in several workplaces, which are fun, relaxed, and informative for both ALWU and employees. Get in touch if you would like ALWU to run an information session at your workplace.
Phase 4: Minimum wage compliance policy
Following the release of the report on ALWU’S Employment Information Survey and the establishment of key relationships, ALWU drafted a minimum wage compliance policy in consultation with the Labour Inspectorate and expert employment law practitioners. This policy is being shared with employers in November 2019 as a guide to compliance with minimum pay entitlements. ALWU encourages employers to adopt this policy to:
- change their practices around pay, particularly in regards to overtime;
- increase transparency and knowledge about minimum entitlements; and
- show their employees that they are complying with the law.
ALWU’s view is that salaried workers’ pay cannot be averaged across all hours worked to comply with the requirements of the Minimum Wage Act and associated Minimum Wage Order. In fact, minimum wage compliance for salaried workers involves a two-part calculation where the employer must pay each employee:
- at least $1,512 per fortnight (or $756 per week, depending on the employer’s pay period); and
- in addition to the above, payments on an hourly basis of at least $18.90 for each hour worked beyond 80 hours per fortnight (or 40 hours per week).
In ALWU’s view, that means that the current approach to minimum wage compliance taken by many employers is insufficient. That is because it merely averages their workers’ pay across all hours worked without accounting for separate hourly payments where they have worked more than 40 hours per week.
This approach has been supported in the courts. You can read more about ALWU’s minimum wage compliance policy and the law here.
Phase 5: Ongoing meetings with employers and advocacy for employees
When ALWU shares its minimum wage compliance policy with an employer, ALWU will outline its expectations on implementing systems and policies that comply with the law. ALWU will continue to engage with employers regularly to confirm they are meeting their obligations, and will engage with regulators and stakeholders as required. ALWU takes breaches of minimum standards seriously and will continue to publicise breaches and progress in this space.
In addition, ALWU is available to assist members at an individual level, and has already done so several times. Along with advocating on behalf of its membership, ALWU can link its members up with experienced employment law experts who kindly offer pro bono support.
ALWU’s minimum wage campaign will be a launchpad for other campaigns on issues that are important to our members. If you think you are working for less than the minimum wage, or if you would like to see ALWU campaign on an issue you are experiencing in your workplace, please contact us.
“For too long there has been a huge imbalance in the power structure of law firms, resulting in the abuse of their vulnerable employees. By standing together, we can say “enough is enough” – and change the whole culture of the legal profession for the better!“
Olivia Wensley #Metoo Activist
