Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill

In an effort to keep legislation up to date and fit for purpose, Regulatory Systems Amendment Bills (RSAB) are used by government agencies to amend the legislation they administer. RSABs bring together multiple pieces of amendment legislation, typically minor in nature, and by processing them together optimize the use of parliamentary time.

The Regulatory Systems (Immigration and Workforce) Amendment Bill (Bill), which passed its first reading in July this year, is an RSAB covering legislation administered by the Ministry for Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE). Below are key points from four of the seven Acts for which amendments have been proposed.

Amendments to Immigration Advisers Licensing Act 2007 (IALA):
· The Bill would allow for an immigration advisers licence to be suspended, before the Immigration Advisers Complaints and Disciplinary Tribunal has completed its investigation, if it considers it necessary or advisable to do so in the interest of the public.
· The disciplinary sanctions that can be imposed on a person would be amended to increase the maximum time period they can be prevented from reapplying for a licence, from two years to a longer specified period or an indefinite ban.
· To reduce the barriers to complaints, complainants would only need to describe their grievances; (giving the relevant dates, places, and times), instead of having to refer to the specific sections of the IALA that apply.

Amendments to Employment Relations Act 2000 (ERA):
· The Bill clarifies for employers their obligation to retain a copy of individual employment agreements, so that the employee does not hold the only copy, and that it is easily accessible.
· A new infringement offence would be created for employers not providing written employment agreements. Also strengthened is the required form and content of the employment agreement – that it must comply with the minimum requirements as set out in the ERA.

Amendments to Health & Safety at Work Act 2015:
· The definition of a notifiable incident would be broadened to include any unplanned or uncontrolled incident in a workplace that ‘could’ expose a person to serious risk to their health or safety.
· The Bill clarifies that WorkSafe NZ may recover costs for enforceable undertakings, and can refuse to accept an enforceable undertaking that does not provide for their reimbursement.

Amendments to Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987:
· The Bill addresses the situation where an employed person unexpectedly becomes a primary carer, or a person soon after receiving custody realise they need to stop work to care for the child. Currently, these people would not be eligible as they did not stop working on becoming a primary carer. The Bill would amend this, entitling them to parental leave payments provided they stop work within a reasonable period after becoming the primary carer.
· The Bill also makes changes to the duration of primary carer leave with respect to pre-term births, providing that pre-term baby payments are in addition to the duration of (must not be counted as part of) extended leave or parental leave payments.

The Bill is with the Education and Workforce Committee, with their report due 23 January 2025.