An amazing number of nominations will make for some strong competition to find the cream of Auckland hospitality in this year’s Lewisham awards.

Pre-loading party-goers in Wellington’s Courtenay Place may force authorities to close two busy bar streets, but critics say it would be overkill.

Excessive drinking is causing so much concern for people’s welfare and damage to cars that Wellington City Council wants to close Blair and Allen streets to vehicles from 10pm, on Friday and Saturday nights.

Part of the proposal includes employing security guards to keep watch until the streets open at 5am and tow any vehicles still parked in the street.

The initiative is one idea from a forum put together to reduce alcohol-related harm in the capital’s party area. The move comes after Chaffers New World supermarket was granted a liquor licence. A year earlier its car park was dubbed  Wellington’s ‘Fight Club’.

Police raised concerns after CCTV of the car park  – just 30 metres from Courtenay Place – a hot spot for pre-loading and after-hours weekend crime, revealed footage of the assaults, disorder, public urination and alcohol abuse.

Senior sergeant Graham Shields of Wellington Police District Alcohol Harm Prevention Unit, said police were supporting the council-led initiative.

“At present the streets are open to traffic. Changes could open up space for pedestrians and give the licensed outlets more space to set up patron queuing areas. That will make it easier for the door staff to identify intoxicated patrons.”

Changes would also improve lines of sight so police and security could see what was going on, he said.

Restaurant Association national president and Wellington restaurateur Mike Egan said a similar initiative had been tried about six years ago and failed.

Egan, who owns Monsoon Poon on Blair St, said the closure would be “problematic”.

“It was expensive to hire security, and hi-vis vests are not a good look – they put normal patrons off the area.”

Many people who went out for dinner or to watch a show used the car parks after 10pm, he said.

The main problems on the streets happened between midnight and 3am, so he did not see any point in hiring security for such a long period.

“We need to review the days and times and get more information.”

Council project manager Phil Becker said revellers parked up and preloaded in the streets.

Drunkenness and damage to property in public spaces went hand-in-hand, and closing the streets was one of the tools to help manage the situation, he said.

The proposal would be taking a different approach to the previous initiative, he said.

It was one of four work streams for the Courtenay Place precinct.

The forum was also looking at a social media campaign, collecting all the data on alcohol-related harm held by different parties and setting up an ‘eyes-on’ drunk people network, similar to that used by the retail sector.

More than 400 CBD retailers share CCTV footage and images of offenders with a security company, which immediately sends a text message and email “warning” alert to other retailers.

First Retail Group managing director Chris Wilkinson said closure was not the right approach and would be a logistical nightmare.

“With the film museum and expansion of the Museum Hotel it’s important the area takes on a more cosmopolitan feel. A sea of fluorescent jackets and vehicles being plucked from the street is not that feel.”

Source: The Dominion Post, 27 April, 2017

We have a wide range of payment options available for paying your membership.

You can either pay by

• Cheque
• Credit Card (we accept, Visa, MasterCard, Diners, Amex)
• Direct Credit (in to our bank account) and
• Direct Debit

The full amount of the membership can be paid by any payment method, or if you wish to pay by monthly installments you can pay by direct debit.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

No, but it is possible that you may be able to dismiss an employee for theft (or unauthorised handling of company property), after following a proper disciplinary process.

If you view camera footage of your employee taking company property without authorisation, you should invite your employee to a formal meeting (the Restaurant Association has a letter template to invite someone for a formal meeting which you can use).

• Your employee should have at least 2 days’ notice of the meeting and should be advised that they are invited to bring a support person or representative along to the meeting.
• You should either email the camera footage to the employee before the meeting, or you should advise them in the letter that if they wish to see the camera footage before the meeting, then you are happy to arrange for this. You should not “spring” the camera footage on the employee at the meeting in an attempt to catch them off guard.
• If you think that there could be a reasonable explanation for the employee taking the property, you may want to make preliminary enquiries by having an “informal chat” with the employee. If you are not satisfied with their initial explanation, you should proceed with the formal disciplinary process.

Theft constitutes serious misconduct and, as noted above, it is possible that, after following a proper disciplinary process, that you may be able to dismiss the employee without notice if you find that the allegations are true.

• During the formal meeting, the employee must be given a reasonable opportunity to respond to the allegations and you must adjourn the meeting to consider any explanations/feedback put forward by the employee. It is also likely that you may also need to conduct some further investigations or interviews based on the employee’s feedback.
• Once you have reported back to the employee your findings from any further investigations and they have nothing further to add, you need to consider the feedback and come to a preliminary decision.
• The preliminary decisions is also communicated to the employee and a separate meeting should be held to allow the employee an opportunity to provide feedback on the preliminary decision.
• Once you have considered the employee’s feedback on the preliminary decision, only then can you make your final decision as to the outcome of this process.

The Restaurant Association can help you with the disciplinary process and recommend that you call the helpline before undertaking the formal disciplinary process or making the decision to dismiss an employee.

Another point to note is that if, during the disciplinary process, your employee resigns, or asks if you would like them to resign, the answer should always be no. If you answer “yes”, you expose yourself to a constructive dismissal claim from the employee. If the employee attempts to resign at any stage during the disciplinary process, you should not accept the employee’s resignation immediately, instead suggest a 24 hours cooling off period for them to consider their decision and come back to you. If they still wish to resign, then they should advise you in writing of this.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

The Restaurant Association’s employment agreement template includes a business interruption clause.

This clause attempts to add clarity to situations where business operations are interrupted by unforeseen events beyond your control, such as a snowstorm, fire or a major earthquake.  In these circumstances, communication, consultation and flexibility is paramount.

Where a business is closed due to weather conditions (even for a couple of days) it is a business interruption, due to circumstances beyond the control of the Employer. The clause in the agreement states that an employer will consult with an employee about any decision regarding payment for the days the business is closed, so business owners need to speak with their employees before making a decision on whether they will be paid or not.

This conversation may include discussions about whether there was alternative work available elsewhere for the employee, and if not, whether it was appropriate that the employee be paid, take leave without pay, or take annual leave etc. If the decision was made not to pay the employee, it is open for the employee to challenge it, however, if the above process is followed you will be unlikely to have any problems.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

The Restaurant Association Helpline sometimes receives calls regarding an employee having secondary employment. Is it possible for an employer to insist that no other employment be undertaken?

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

If you play music in your business you need the permission of the people who own the music you play to use their work in this way.

Under the New Zealand Copyright Act 1994, music writers and the owners of the recordings of that music have a number of rights which allow them to control how and when their music is used and to negotiate payment for this use.

These rights include:

• The right to perform music in public, (e.g. by playing a CD, radio, TV or by a live performance)
• The right to communicate music to the public, (e.g. a radio or television broadcast, via a music on hold system or to make available for download)
• The right to reproduce music, (e.g. on a CD or on any recording device)

Because it is difficult or impossible to obtain permission from every copyright owner prior to performing, communicating or reproducing their music, OneMusic has been established to provide a link between music users and creators and producers of the music. OneMusic is a joint licensing initiative between APRA (who represent music writers and publishers) and Recorded Music NZ (who represent record companies and recording artists). OneMusic’s role is to administer the rights of their members (i.e. a worldwide repertoire of music writers, publishers and record companies) and enable you to play music in public by taking one simple licence.

If you perform or communicate music to the public, or reproduce music, you need to obtain a OneMusic licence to comply with the New Zealand Copyright Act 1994.

For further information on OneMusic click here or watch the below explainer video:

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

If you are a part of the programme you do not need to sell the vouchers – they are sold through an online secure ordering facility on www.dinefind.co.nz.

If someone wants to use a voucher at your business we simply ask that you accept them. A Restaurant Association gift voucher has the same value to you as cash. You receive the full proceeds (eg, if a voucher is for $100, you will receive $100). There is no commission or processing charge – the Restaurant Association has absorbed all of these costs to enable our members to benefit completely from the initiatives.

For redemption –  simply send it back to us, or scan and email it back to us, with your bank account details and we direct credit you for the FULL amount of the voucher. Payments for the gift vouchers are made every Friday.

Simply email us on info@restaurantnz.co.nz or call – (09) 638 8403 if you would like to join the gift vocuher programe, if you wish to discuss further. For more info check out the gift voucher and restaurant gift card survival guide.

Firstly, employers can hire new employees on a trial period of 90 days or less and this has become a standard inclusion in employment agreements for new employees.

In the event that the employee is dismissed during the trial period the employee is unable to take a personal grievance for unjustified dismissal (they may still take a personal grievance on other grounds).

 Some of the key factors to consider, to ensure your 90 day trial is valid are:

• You cannot put someone on a 90 day trial if they have previously worked for you (even as a casual).
• The fact that there will be a 90 day trial period must be discussed with a prospective employee and outlined in the offer of employment.
• A trial period clause must also be in the written employment agreement (by using the Restaurant Association agreement template you are covered).
• The employment agreement must be signed before the employee commences work.
• You must not treat employees on a trial period any differently to any of your other employees (note that the employee can’t bring a grievance for unjustified dismissal, but can still bring other types of grievances against the employer, for example unjustified disadvantage (the most common), discrimination, sexual harassment, etc).
• If you do decide to action a dismissal through the 90 day trial period provision, the dismissal must be with notice (and not payment in lieu of notice, unless it was requested and mutually agreed upon between the employer and employee).

If you like a copy of the Restaurant Associations employment relations package, which includes employment agreement templates and guidelines, order a free copy (for members) from us today.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

Talk to us!

Offering expert business guidance and the tools and resources to help your business are some of the many ways the Restaurant Association supports our members. We offer free employment advice to all of our members with a team of specialised experts ready to help.

• 24/7 Helpline (0800 737 827)
• Employment relations advice
• Lease agreements and contracts
• Liquor licensing (Sale & Supply of Alcohol Act)
• Letter templates and guidelines
• Confidential support and advice

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

Also try looking over the sample letters and guidelines under the resources link for more information. If you are not a Member but would like to become a member Join Now online or contact us on (09) 638 8403.

Typically hospitality businesses will have a well documented procedure for cashing up. However, from time to time we are contacted by an employer who wants to know how they can deal with an employee that they consider has been careless in following the procedures, resulting in regular discrepancies in the cash up. Can the employer recover the lost amount equivalent to the ‘lost’ cash?

The Wages Protection Act 1983 sets out the way wages must be paid, and prevents unlawful deductions from wages. In certain circumstances an employer can make a deduction from pay. For example, if:

• the deduction is specifically required by law, for example, PAYE tax, student loan repayment, child support
• the deduction is for a lawful purpose, is reasonable and the employee has agreed to or asked for the deduction in writing. ‘Agreed in writing’ includes a general deductions clause in the employment agreement, but an employer must consult with the employee before they make a specific deduction under a general deductions clause. The employee can vary or withdraw their written consent to a deduction by giving notice in writing at any time. The employer must then vary or stop the deductions within two weeks of receiving the notice or as soon as practicable
• the deduction is to recover an overpayment in limited circumstances
• a court directs that a deduction be made.

If an employer takes money from an employee’s pay without written consent (the employer can’t pressure the employee to agree), the employee could take an action in the Employment Relations Authority to get the money back.

Therefore, in our opinion it would be difficult to enforce a ‘repayment’ for a banking shortfall. The matter should however be addressed with the employee to establish if the “cashing up” errors were the result of the procedures not being understood by the employee? It is also a good idea to review whether the training was adequate? If the discrepancies continued after this, it may be suitable to instigate a formal disciplinary process if it was felt that the failure to follow company process was deliberate.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

The Holidays Act provides that all employees on the anniversary of their employment are entitled to four weeks paid annual leave. The Act also provides for an additional 11 paid statutory holidays.

For example if you have an employee who is on annual leave over the Christmas / New Year period, they are entitled to additionally be paid for December 25, 26 and January 01, 02 if the days on which they fall are normal days of work. These days will be paid as statutory holidays and not taken from the employee’s annual leave entitlement.

To discuss further please contact the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz.