Employment: Access to jobs and protection against discrimination
Your pay and the minimum wage laws
If you’re 16 or older you’re entitled to the relevant minimum wage. However, this changes if a labour inspector has issued an “exemption permit” because you have an impairment that significantly affects your ability to do the job. The exemption permit allows your employer to pay you less than the minimum wage.
When can employers get exemption permits for “significant” impairments?
Before a labour inspector will issue an exemption for you to be paid below minimum wage, the inspector has to be satisfied that the arrangement is reasonable and appropriate. Your wage rate will be stated in the exemption permit, and the rate must relate to your ability to do the job.
Employment New Zealand gives some guidance about how inspectors will decide whether to grant an exemption, which we summarise here:
- The inspector won’t issue an exemption if they think you should be paid the relevant minimum wage, or if the pay rate offered isn’t fair, or if you’re not happy with the rate.
- You and the employer should negotiate the pay rate between you, and when you’re discussing this you should consider how you could earn a higher rate of pay than the one that’s proposed. For example, the employer could match your job tasks more closely to your abilities, give you more training or support, or make changes to the workplace (to the physical set-up or to how the work is done), or offer you flexible hours.
- The inspector will want to check you’ve been given the chance to have an independent representative, support person or advocate when you’re negotiating.
- The rate you’ve negotiated should be consistent with other comparable exemption permits for disabled people, and you must get all the other minimum standards like holidays.
You can read Employment New Zealand’s guidelines on minimum wage exemptions at employment.govt.nz/hours-and-wages/pay/minimum-wage/minimum-wage-exemptions/
Last Updated 14/06/2024
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