Sowry Roger: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers  
Sowry Roger: Questions for Oral Answer — Questions to Ministers  
[Volume:615;Page:11006] 
7.  
Hon ROGER SOWRY (National) 
 to the  
Minister of Labour 
: Will an employer’s genuine preference to employ their employees on individual contracts be considered a genuine reason not to enter a collective contract under the Employment Relations Law Reform Bill;if not why not? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON (Minister of Labour) 
: 
 The answer depends on whether the employees also agree to enter an individual agreement. If they do then there is a genuine reason not to enter a collective agreement. If they do not agree to enter an individual agreement but want a collective agreement then the employer needs to justify why these employees should not be able to negotiate a collective agreement. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: In a situation in which only a low proportion of an employer’s employees have joined the union which has initiated bargaining will the employer have a genuine reason not to enter into a collective agreement; if not why not? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: They may well depending on the circumstances of the case. 
Hon Mark Gosche 
: Can the Minister give examples of a genuine reason? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: While it is for the authority or the court to determine what is a genuine reason in the particular circumstances the intention behind the provision is to ensure that reasons are given and that the employees’ request is not rejected out of hand without any reasons. 
Peter Brown 
: Will a group of non-union employees who have a genuine preference for a collective agreement be allowed to have a collective agreement or will they simply be told to go away and join a union; if so what justification is there for that? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: If employees genuinely want a collective agreement they can have one. The current legislation states that they form a union to be able to get the collective agreement. 
Paul Adams 
: In light of the fact that the Employment Relations Law Reform Bill imposes a $10000 fine on employers who do not have a genuine reason not to settle a collective agreement combined with the provisions in the bill that allow for a bargaining bonus for those negotiating a collective agreement does the Minister agree that either way this bill will cost business; if not why not? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: As I recall—and I am sorry but I cannot find the specific provisions—it is not merely saying there is no genuine reason. In fact there has to be a pattern of behaviour that over a long period of time sustains a refusal to be able to negotiate before the penalty would in fact be applied. 
Hon Roger Sowry 
: Does the Minister still stand by her statement that: “The Employment Relations Law Reform Bill is about freedom of choice.” in light of the bill’s clear prejudice against individual contracts; if so why? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: Yes. The Government stands by the fact that it is promoting choice and the fact that 80 percent of employees choose individual agreements would indicate that was successful. 
Paul Adams 
: Does the Employment Relations Law Reform Bill have any regard for an employer’s genuine preferences if he or she is forced to hire the existing workforce when taking on a new business or contract? 
Hon MARGARET WILSON 
: In terms of the vulnerable workers the requirement is of course that arrangements be made for their continued employment in the new business. For other people in the workforce there is no obligation as such except to have a provision that there will be negotiation the outcome of which will be determined by the bargaining between the employer and the employee.