Human Rights Amendment Bill

                                Government Bill

              As reported from the committee of the whole House

This bill was formerly part of the Employment Relations Law Reform Bill as 
reported from the Transport and Industrial Relations Committee. The committee 
of the whole House has further amended the bill and divided it as follows:

  o   The Employment Relations Amendment Bill (No 2), comprising Part 1 and 
Schedules 1 and 2

  o   This Health and Safety in Employment Amendment Bill (No 2), comprising 
Part 3

  o   This bill, comprising Part 4.
 

                               Hon Paul Swain 

                         Human Rights Amendment Bill

                                Government Bill

                                  Contents 

1   Title

2   Commencement

                 .        .        .        .        .

99   Section 64 repealed

100  New section 79A inserted
       
       79A   Choice of procedures

101  New section 92BA inserted

       92BA   Lodging of applications

                 .        .        .        .        .


The Parliament of New Zealand enacts as follows:


    1 Title

  (1)  This Act is the Human Rights Amendment Act 2004.

  (2)  In this Act, the Human Rights Act 1993          
1993 No 82
 is called "the principal Act".


    2 Commencement
This Act comes into force on 1 December 2004.

                                 .   .   .   .   .


    99 Section 64 repealed
Section 64 of the principal Act is repealed.


    100 New section 79A inserted
The principal Act is amended by inserted after section 79, the following 
section:

    "79A Choice of procedures

    "(1)  If the circumstances giving rise to a complaint under Part 2 are such 
that an employee would also be entitled to pursue a personal grievance under 
the Employment Relations Act 2002, the employee may take 1, but not both, of 
the following steps:

    "(a)  the employee may make in relation to those circumstances a complaint 
under this Act:

    "(b)  the employee may, if the grievance is not otherwise resolved, apply 
to the Employment Relations Authority for the resolution of the grievance under 
the Employment Relations Act 2000.

    "(2)  To avoid doubt, a complaint referred to in subsection (1) includes, 
but is not limited to, a complaint about sexual harassment or racial harassment.

    "(3)  For the purposes of subsection (1)(a), an employee makes a complaint 
when proceedings about that complaint are commenced by the complainant or the 
Commission.

    "(4)  If an employee makes a complaint under subsection (1)(a), the 
employee may not exercise or continue to exercise any rights relating to the 
subject matter of the complaint that the employee may have under the Employment 
Relations Act 2000.

    "(5)  If an employee applies to the Employment Relations Authority for a 
resolution of the grievance under subsection (1)(b), the employee may not 
exercise or continue to exercise any rights relating to the subject matter of 
the grievance that the employee may have under this Act."


    101 New section 92BA inserted
The principal Act is amended by inserting, after section 92B, the 
following section:

    "92BA Lodging of applications

Proceedings before the Tribunal are to be commenced by the lodging of an 
application in the prescribed form."

                             .   .   .   .   .

                             Legislative history

14 October 2004   Divided from Employment Relations Law Reform Bill (Bill 92-2) 
                  as Bill 92-3C