KEY POINTS:
A salesman who moved from Australia to New Zealand to take up a job only to be told it did not exist has been awarded $20,000 in compensation.
The Employment Relations Authority ruled Adam Legge was offered a position as salesman for Nordic Power Desiccants Ltd, then unfairly dismissed when he was told the position was no longer available.
The company had said the offer made to Mr Legge was not legally binding as it had been made by an employee without official authority.
Mr Legge, an Australian resident, was offered the position via telephone on September 13 by his aunt's partner, Michael Blacklow.
A sales executive for Nordic, Mr Blacklow had been involved in the hiring and firing of six employees prior to that date.
Mr Legge said he was offered a specific salary, with benefits, and told the starting date of the position was November 1.
He accepted the position and arrived in Christchurch on October 16.
The authority said "fortunately as things turned out," rather than resign from his Australian job, Mr Legge had taken three months' leave, as he assumed the new role would have a three-month probationary period of employment, as was typical in Australia.
Mr Legge signed an employment agreement with Mr Blacklow, but upon meeting Scott Bright, the governing director of Nordic that afternoon, he was told the job was no longer available.
The authority found there was a clear conflict of evidence between Mr Bright and Mr Blacklow.
Mr Bright said he had told his employee to ring Mr Legge only to see if he was interested in the job, while Mr Blacklow said he had instruction to offer Mr Legge the position.
The authority preferred Mr Blacklow's recollection of events, saying he had authority to offer the position, and the position was accepted.
The dismissal was clearly unjustified, as Mr Legge was summoned to a meeting with Mr Bright with no support person and told without any forewarning he was no longer to be employed.
The authority noted Mr Bright knew before Mr Legge set off for New Zealand that he had been offered the job, and yet did not address the issue until he had actually arrived and signed his contract.
The authority awarded Mr Legge compensation of $5000; three months' lost wages, at a total of $13,000; three months' holiday pay at $1040; and reimbursement of travel costs, at $854.
It directed the two parties to engage with each other over the issue of Mr Legge's legal fees.
- NZPA
