NZ Herald
  • Home
  • Latest news
  • Herald NOW
  • Video
  • New Zealand
  • Sport
  • World
  • Business
  • Entertainment
  • Podcasts
  • Quizzes
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Viva
  • Weather

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • New Zealand
    • All New Zealand
    • Crime
    • Politics
    • Education
    • Open Justice
    • Scam Update
  • Herald NOW
  • On The Up
  • World
    • All World
    • Australia
    • Asia
    • UK
    • United States
    • Middle East
    • Europe
    • Pacific
  • Business
    • All Business
    • MarketsSharesCurrencyCommoditiesStock TakesCrypto
    • Markets with Madison
    • Media Insider
    • Business analysis
    • Personal financeKiwiSaverInterest ratesTaxInvestment
    • EconomyInflationGDPOfficial cash rateEmployment
    • Small business
    • Business reportsMood of the BoardroomProject AucklandSustainable business and financeCapital markets reportAgribusiness reportInfrastructure reportDynamic business
    • Deloitte Top 200 Awards
    • CompaniesAged CareAgribusinessAirlinesBanking and financeConstructionEnergyFreight and logisticsHealthcareManufacturingMedia and MarketingRetailTelecommunicationsTourism
  • Opinion
    • All Opinion
    • Analysis
    • Editorials
    • Business analysis
    • Premium opinion
    • Letters to the editor
  • Politics
  • Sport
    • All Sport
    • OlympicsParalympics
    • RugbySuper RugbyNPCAll BlacksBlack FernsRugby sevensSchool rugby
    • CricketBlack CapsWhite Ferns
    • Racing
    • NetballSilver Ferns
    • LeagueWarriorsNRL
    • FootballWellington PhoenixAuckland FCAll WhitesFootball FernsEnglish Premier League
    • GolfNZ Open
    • MotorsportFormula 1
    • Boxing
    • UFC
    • BasketballNBABreakersTall BlacksTall Ferns
    • Tennis
    • Cycling
    • Athletics
    • SailingAmerica's CupSailGP
    • Rowing
  • Lifestyle
    • All Lifestyle
    • Viva - Food, fashion & beauty
    • Society Insider
    • Royals
    • Sex & relationships
    • Food & drinkRecipesRecipe collectionsRestaurant reviewsRestaurant bookings
    • Health & wellbeing
    • Fashion & beauty
    • Pets & animals
    • The Selection - Shop the trendsShop fashionShop beautyShop entertainmentShop giftsShop home & living
    • Milford's Investing Place
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • TV
    • MoviesMovie reviews
    • MusicMusic reviews
    • BooksBook reviews
    • Culture
    • ReviewsBook reviewsMovie reviewsMusic reviewsRestaurant reviews
  • Travel
    • All Travel
    • News
    • New ZealandNorthlandAucklandWellingtonCanterburyOtago / QueenstownNelson-TasmanBest NZ beaches
    • International travelAustraliaPacific IslandsEuropeUKUSAAfricaAsia
    • Rail holidays
    • Cruise holidays
    • Ski holidays
    • Luxury travel
    • Adventure travel
  • Kāhu Māori news
  • Environment
    • All Environment
    • Our Green Future
  • Talanoa Pacific news
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Property Insider
    • Interest rates tracker
    • Residential property listings
    • Commercial property listings
  • Health
  • Technology
    • All Technology
    • AI
    • Social media
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology
    • Opinion
    • Audio & podcasts
  • Weather forecasts
    • All Weather forecasts
    • Kaitaia
    • Whangārei
    • Dargaville
    • Auckland
    • Thames
    • Tauranga
    • Hamilton
    • Whakatāne
    • Rotorua
    • Tokoroa
    • Te Kuiti
    • Taumaranui
    • Taupō
    • Gisborne
    • New Plymouth
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Dannevirke
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Levin
    • Paraparaumu
    • Masterton
    • Wellington
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Blenheim
    • Westport
    • Reefton
    • Kaikōura
    • Greymouth
    • Hokitika
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
    • Wānaka
    • Oamaru
    • Queenstown
    • Dunedin
    • Gore
    • Invercargill
  • Meet the journalists
  • Promotions & competitions
  • OneRoof property listings
  • Driven car news

Puzzles & Quizzes

  • Puzzles
    • All Puzzles
    • Sudoku
    • Code Cracker
    • Crosswords
    • Cryptic crossword
    • Wordsearch
  • Quizzes
    • All Quizzes
    • Morning quiz
    • Afternoon quiz
    • Sports quiz

Regions

  • Northland
    • All Northland
    • Far North
    • Kaitaia
    • Kerikeri
    • Kaikohe
    • Bay of Islands
    • Whangarei
    • Dargaville
    • Kaipara
    • Mangawhai
  • Auckland
  • Waikato
    • All Waikato
    • Hamilton
    • Coromandel & Hauraki
    • Matamata & Piako
    • Cambridge
    • Te Awamutu
    • Tokoroa & South Waikato
    • Taupō & Tūrangi
  • Bay of Plenty
    • All Bay of Plenty
    • Katikati
    • Tauranga
    • Mount Maunganui
    • Pāpāmoa
    • Te Puke
    • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Hawke's Bay
    • All Hawke's Bay
    • Napier
    • Hastings
    • Havelock North
    • Central Hawke's Bay
    • Wairoa
  • Taranaki
    • All Taranaki
    • Stratford
    • New Plymouth
    • Hāwera
  • Manawatū - Whanganui
    • All Manawatū - Whanganui
    • Whanganui
    • Palmerston North
    • Manawatū
    • Tararua
    • Horowhenua
  • Wellington
    • All Wellington
    • Kapiti
    • Wairarapa
    • Upper Hutt
    • Lower Hutt
  • Nelson & Tasman
    • All Nelson & Tasman
    • Motueka
    • Nelson
    • Tasman
  • Marlborough
  • West Coast
  • Canterbury
    • All Canterbury
    • Kaikōura
    • Christchurch
    • Ashburton
    • Timaru
  • Otago
    • All Otago
    • Oamaru
    • Dunedin
    • Balclutha
    • Alexandra
    • Queenstown
    • Wanaka
  • Southland
    • All Southland
    • Invercargill
    • Gore
    • Stewart Island
  • Gisborne

Media

  • Video
    • All Video
    • NZ news video
    • Herald NOW
    • Business news video
    • Politics news video
    • Sport video
    • World news video
    • Lifestyle video
    • Entertainment video
    • Travel video
    • Markets with Madison
    • Kea Kids news
  • Podcasts
    • All Podcasts
    • The Front Page
    • On the Tiles
    • Ask me Anything
    • The Little Things
  • Cartoons
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / New Zealand

Redundant mother wins fight for pay

By Cliff Taylor
Herald on Sunday·
17 May, 2008 05:00 PM4 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

KEY POINTS:

A young Auckland couple is celebrating a landmark victory against the Department of Labour, which could set a precedent for redundant workers' entitlement to paid parental leave.

Customer services representative Carla van Walen and her plumber husband Kevin took the department to the Employment Relations Authority (ERA) after being told she was ineligible for paid maternity leave because she had been made redundant.

They couldn't afford a lawyer, so prepared and presented the case themselves.

The ERA has ordered the decision against Carla should be reversed.

In February, Carla was seven months pregnant when she turned up for work, as usual, at her job with The Joneses real estate company, only to find the office phone lines and computers were dead.

Later that day she and the other staff were called to a meeting and told the company was being put into voluntary liquidation.

"It was a company I'd been with almost since day one," she said. "I believed in the philosophy and the directors - there wasn't a dry eye in the house."

But worse was to come. Later that day she contacted the IRD to check her leave entitlement.

She had taken the precaution of applying for paid parental leave (PPL) back in December and the IRD had advised her she would be paid $391.28 a week, less tax and student loan deductions, from March 10 to June 5.

Her case was passed to the Department of Labour.

Just hours after losing her job she was told, over the phone by a department information officer, that she was ineligible to receive PPL because her employment had "terminated" three weeks before her leave was scheduled to start. The decision was later confirmed in writing: "This means that you do not have a position from which to take parental leave," a letter from the Labour Department said.

"I was devastated," said Carla. "We were counting on that last bit of income," added Kevin. "We hadn't even bought a pram."

With a baby on the way Carla and Kevin refused to accept the decision.

"It just wasn't fair," he said. "She hadn't done anything wrong."

The couple couldn't afford a lawyer or find anyone else willing to take the case on. So they did it themselves, and Kevin presented their case in court.

"It was all based around that four weeks' notice period. Carla did everything by the book."

Robin Arthur, for the ERA, agreed, saying the Department of Labour's decision should be reversed.

He said Carla's employment agreement clearly stated she should be given one month's notice of termination, and that term was "not extinguished" by The Joneses' decision to put itself into liquidation.

The notice took her beyond the start date of her PPL, while she was still an eligible employee.

Arthur said it was up to the department and ultimately Parliament to consider whether there was an "apparent gap" in eligibility for PPL.

The Department of Labour said in the vast majority of cases it was clear whether an expectant parent met the criteria for PPL.

"This case, however, involved an unusual set of circumstances - an applicant made redundant three weeks before maternity leave was due to start.

"The initial assessment, based on the information provided, was that this applicant did not meet the specified criteria.

"The applicant was advised of her right to have the decision reviewed by the ERA, and she exercised that right."

The department said the ERA decision was "helpful" in resolving an area of uncertainty.

Carla, Kevin and son Taylor, born last month, are now looking forward to receiving their cheque from the IRD. "As soon as possible would be nice," said Carla.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Save

    Share this article

Latest from New Zealand

New Zealand

Rhythm and Vines organisers release economic data from 2024 event

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Crime

'They wanted to send a message': Rainbow Warrior bomber speaks out

09 Jul 05:00 PM
New Zealand

'They burned me': Auckland woman scarred after facial treatment at beauty clinic

09 Jul 05:00 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Recommended for you
Public film agency's global missions: 'You won't see any photos of us drinking'
Media Insider

Public film agency's global missions: 'You won't see any photos of us drinking'

09 Jul 05:19 PM
The challenge the All Blacks face ahead of second French test
All Blacks

The challenge the All Blacks face ahead of second French test

09 Jul 05:10 PM
'They burned me': Auckland woman scarred after facial treatment at beauty clinic
New Zealand

'They burned me': Auckland woman scarred after facial treatment at beauty clinic

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Man cycling across Oz to honour NZ doctor who saved his life before dying in quake
Christchurch

Man cycling across Oz to honour NZ doctor who saved his life before dying in quake

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Rainbow Warrior: 40 years on – why France attacked Greenpeace and NZ
Crime

Rainbow Warrior: 40 years on – why France attacked Greenpeace and NZ

09 Jul 05:00 PM

Latest from New Zealand

Rhythm and Vines organisers release economic data from 2024 event

Rhythm and Vines organisers release economic data from 2024 event

09 Jul 05:00 PM

Visitor expenditure for Rhythm and Vines 2024 reached $5.72 million.

'They wanted to send a message': Rainbow Warrior bomber speaks out

'They wanted to send a message': Rainbow Warrior bomber speaks out

09 Jul 05:00 PM
'They burned me': Auckland woman scarred after facial treatment at beauty clinic

'They burned me': Auckland woman scarred after facial treatment at beauty clinic

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Premium
Editorial: Weight-loss drug turns public health opportunity into private luxury

Editorial: Weight-loss drug turns public health opportunity into private luxury

09 Jul 05:00 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP
search by queryly Advanced Search