Government plans further changes to employment law

6/04/08

In an announcement timed to coincide with the centenary commemorations of the 1908 Blackball miners strike, the Minister of Labour, Trevor Mallard stated that the government will be introducing law changes later this year to provide for regulated meal and rest intervals and ‘where reasonable and practicable’ facilities and breaks for employees wishing to breastfeed. These measures would be further supported by a code of practice to promote breast feeding in the workplace. Contrary to widely held belief there are, in fact, no statutory requirements around meal and rest breaks. More welcome, was news announced at the same time that the Government also intends to make changes to the Holidays Act to ensure that the flexible, voluntary, arrangements made by shift workers and their employers to transfer public holidays when a shift spanned two days, one of which was a public holiday, will be allowed to continue in their intended form. A recent Supreme Court decision had jeopardised these arrangements.