ERA finds builder penalised carpenter's injury-related absences and predetermined his selection in a flawed restructure
A construction company has been ordered to pay $20,000 to a long-serving carpenter after the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) found it unjustifiably made him redundant, partly by counting his injury-related absences against him.
The ERA found that the employer failed to show that a carpenter position was surplus to its needs, unfairly penalised the carpenter for ACC-related and sick leave absences, and had settled on his selection before consulting him.
"These were not minor defects. They deprived [the carpenter] of a meaningful opportunity to influence the decision before it was made," ERA Member William Fussey said in the ruling.
The carpenter joined the company as an apprentice in March 2013 and later qualified as a carpenter. He was off work on ACC for about two months after injuring his shoulder in November 2023, then for about six months after surgery in July 2024, returning in January 2025.
That month, the company's director warned staff of "difficult times ahead." Citing falling profit margins, costly unsuccessful tenders, and loss-making jobs, he announced in February 2025 that staff numbers would be cut by five.
With help from an HR adviser, the director scored every employee against selection criteria, where the carpenter received two out of ten for "unpaid time off," a score the employer...
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