KEY POINTS:
A man diagnosed with HIV has been awarded $6000 after it was found he was constructively dismissed by his employer.
The man, whose name has been suppressed, left his job as a showroom manager after only seven months employment.
During that time his employer issued two warning notices.
The first was due to misuse of the internet, poor showroom management and because the man made a pricing mistake.
After the first warning the man was diagnosed as HIV positive, which he told his employer about, and he began to take a large number of days of sick leave.
The second warning issued to the man by his employer said there were concerns about a lack of improvement in the workplace, inflated claims on his CV and the number of sick days he was taking off.
Employment Relations Authority member Yvonne Oldfield said unlike the first warning, which she considered justified, the second was not.
"No account was taken of the fact that he was facing serious health problems, which impacted on both his emotional and physical fitness, to address the respondent's performance concerns."
The man told the authority he felt he had no support after the first warning and had no confidence any further meetings with his employer would have a positive outcome.
He said he felt he had no other choice but to leave.
Ms Oldfield said she felt the man was constructively dismissed and awarded him $6000 for suffering, humiliation, loss of dignity and injury to his feelings.
- NZPA
