The Advocate | Issue 369 | December 2025

A recap 

The employment law space is an ever-evolving area. Generally, there are always changes and issues when the Government changes hands.  However, the law has also evolved with the way that society has developed over time. 

The past 25 years have been notable. While we will not go into the detail of every change, below we highlight some of the memorable changes we have experienced in our practice. 

• From 2 October 2000 the Employment Relations Act 2000  came into effect, introducing a legal framework founded on the principle of good faith, which had evolved through case law. This marked a significant shift from viewing employment as a purely contractual arrangement to recognising it as an “employment relationship” built around good faith. 
• On 1 April 2004 the Holidays Act 2003  came into effect, which over its tenure has possibly provided more headaches for employees and employers than actual rest and recreation in relation to annual holidays. Successive Governments have looked at how to fix the problems that have occurred, with the current Government proposing a full repeal and replacement with a new Employment Leave Act. 
• The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015  was introduced, out of need and following the Pike River Mine catastrophe.  The Act significantly expanded on and placed clear obligations on both employer and employee to take reasonable care of health and safety in the workplace. This saw the expansion to the requirement to eliminate or mitigate risks to health and safety, including mental health and safety which has come to the forefront over the past few years. 
• The Fair Pay Agreements Act 2022, which introduced a new framework for setting minimum terms of employment for industries/occupations that were covered by a Fair Pay Agreement. This was a similar approach to the awards system which was repealed in 1991. However, the Fair Pay Agreements Act was repealed before any application could be finalised. 
• Trial periods  – being open to all employers, then restricted to those employers with fewer than 20 employees, and then brought back again for all employers to access. 
• Inflation  – in 2000, the minimum wage was $7.00 per hour ($13.43 – inflation adjusted figure). The minimum wage has since risen to $23.50 per hour. There has not been one single year since 2000 where the minimum wage has not increased. 
• A move towards flexible working  – although flexible working arrangements were introduced to the Employment Relations Act 2000 prior to 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic saw a significant societal shift towards flexible working arrangements.
• Contractor versus employee developments -This time 25 years ago, we wrote about the then new approach to the question of whether an individual is a contractor or employee. Timely, given the Supreme Court’s decision having been recently released in Raiser Operations BV and others v E Tu Inc and another [2025] NZSC 162 (the “Uber Decision”). In the Uber Decision, the Supreme Court upheld the Court of Appeal’s finding that four drivers engaged by Uber were employees for the purposes of the Employment Relations Act. This issue is on the current Government’s agenda with the proposed introduction of a “gateway” test for independent contractors which could make the status of an individual clearer but would not remove their right to challenge their status altogether. 
• The cost of getting it wrong rises  - In May 1995, we reported on compensation awards under the Employment Contracts Act 1991. We’ve compared this to the data from July 2024 to June 2025 from employment.govt.nz. The data highlights the increase in awards of compensation, with most sitting between $10,000 to $25,000 in 2024/2025. The lowest award in the Authority for the 2024 period was $700, and the highest $105,000. 
• The beginning of generation AI - Today, the use of generative artificial intelligence is more accessible than ever before. Some industries will use AI on a daily basis to gain efficiencies and increase productivity, and employment relations practice has not been untouched by this change.

What do we expect from 2026 and beyond?

The current trends we expect to see continue include:

1. Advancements in technology, including the use of artificial intelligence. 
2. Changes in the law – the current Government has reported on the Employment Relations Amendment Bill, and we expect to see these changes implemented in 2026. The Government has reported it will introduce the new Employment Leave Bill, and will pass it before its current term ends. If the Government changes at the election next year, we already expect to see some movement on previous policies, and/or a step back from changes implemented by the current Government. 
3. Continued changes to the work being done and the way that people are working.

The adult minimum wage will rise to $23.95 an hour from 1 April 2026. This is an increase of 45 cents per hour from the current hourly rate of $23.50.

The training and starting-out minimum wages will also both increase to $19.16 per hour, remaining at 80% of the adult minimum wage. This is a rise from the current minimum rate of $18.80 per hour.

An employee working 40 hours per week on the adult minimum wage will earn an extra $18 per week or $936 per annum (before tax) compared to the current minimum wage.