Retail, hospitality businesses in Hamilton have come under Labour Inspectorate spotlight when unannounced visits were made to check compliance with minimum employment standards.
Ten Labour Inspectors were involved in the operation on 30 January, supported by a team from Immigration New Zealand (INZ) who were verifying conditions of accredited employers, providing education on visa and accreditation requirements and checking for any potential migrant exploitation.
At this stage, the “checks are ongoing” and more information is expected after all the information collected has been assessed, according to the Labour Inspectorate.
“The Hamilton operation, dubbed Operation Atoll, was the first phase of an ongoing long-term initiative throughout the central North Island focussing on the retail and hospitality sector,” says Simon Humphries, Head of the Labour Inspectorate.
“Our team will be conducting compliance visits to selected retail and hospitality businesses in Waikato, Bay of Plenty, Gisborne, Hawke’s Bay, Manawatu-Wanganui, Taranaki and Wellington.”
Humphries, who joined the inspectors during the visits in Hamilton, said while there were positive signs employers were complying with their minimum employment obligations, or wanted to be compliant, there were others who needed to make improvements to their employment practices, for example, apparent issues with record keeping.
“Our inspectors will continue to engage with these businesses assessing the information requested and following up with them to ensure they become compliant if they are found not to be.”
He said while the operation is primarily focused on checking compliance at businesses, the MBIE regulatory teams will also seek to educate employers and employees about their rights and responsibilities regarding minimum employment standards.
“During the Hamilton phase of the operation it was encouraging to find employers who were eager to learn what improvements they could make to their employment practices. Some also expressed gratitude that our inspectors were in their area to clamp down on businesses who tried to take unfair advantage by skirting the law, Humphries says.
