The ERA found no signed agreements and no fair process before dismissal
A New Zealand restaurant's reliance on unsigned fixed-term contracts led to an unjustified dismissal finding and a $26,000-plus award on 30 March 2026.
The Employment Relations Authority determined that Bookieland Limited, operator of the Mussel Pot restaurant in Havelock, unjustifiably dismissed chef Tracy Alpar after a working arrangement built on unsigned and unenforceable fixed-term agreements fell apart during a seasonal close-down.
Ms Alpar had worked at the Mussel Pot for approximately 14 years before Bookieland purchased the business in May 2022. She was offered and accepted employment with Bookieland from September 2022 and continued working at the Mussel Pot as a chef, with the restaurant closing each winter for approximately three months while she travelled overseas.
In May 2024, shareholder Susana Wong told Ms Alpar the business was being marketed for sale and that she would not be on the list of employees to transfer to any new employer. Ms Alpar says she did not understand her employment to have ended. In a conversation on 25 May 2024, she said she would see Ms Wong for work in September, and Ms Wong replied with words to the effect of "maybe not. Hopefully we have sold." Ms Alpar vacated the on-site accommodation, which Ms Wong described as a "financial perk" of the arrangement, before travelling overseas.
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