Sterling Accountants Limited : Chartered Accountants, Christchurch, New Zealand

Business Perspective

New Employment Relations Bill
Changes recently introduced in Parliament are being described as the biggest labour reform in 20 years.

The proposed changes include:

• Removal of fixed breaks, allowing flexibility
• Extension of the optional 90-day trial for new employees to all employers
• The end of compensation for dismissal where the employer makes ‘minor or technical’ mistakes
• Letting employees request cash instead of the fourth week’s leave
• Allowing transfer of public holidays to other days by agreement

Whilst unions are up in arms about the changes, business leaders are describing them as ‘thoughtful, moderate, pragmatic and, above all, fair’. 



Trimming the Fat, not the Muscle
A leading human resources survey of Australasian employers and employees sends a serious message to businesses.

Those employers who have ‘cut into the muscle’ and made too many redundancies are now facing a skills shortage which is likely to worsen during economic recovery.

The survey noted that a huge 84% of employers believed they had made too many redundancies and two thirds said their teams were now under resourced.  

Employers also reported that almost half of their new recruits were not of good quality.

‘The effects of a poor hire go way beyond the cost of back-filling the role.  A bad hire will damage the team and have a negative lasting effect on existing high performers’.

‘Employers will face a battle to retain talent against a backdrop of fierce competition and greater movement among employees' the survey suggests.

So...  trim only the fat and look after the muscle in your business.

Source:   Rebecca Stevenson Skills shortage after redundancies Business Day 2010