Drunk In Charge of an Employment Relationship

A nearly one month stint as a farm worker ended in strange circumstances in late 2023.  Mr Huriwaka’s job “was full time and involved spraying, weed removal, tractor maintenance and other general farm work”, according to a determination of the Employment Relations Authority.

2026-NZERA-8.pdf (7 January 2026)

No issues had been raised about Mr Huriwaka’s performance. There was no employment agreement between Mr Huriwaka and Walton Mountain Ltd (the employer), and the dismissal was immediate and unexplained, apart from director John Fleming telling him “cause I’m the f**king boss.”

That could be partly explained by Mr Fleming having a bottle of Heineken in his hand with five empties in the vicinity when Mr Huriwaka went to see him, at around 8.30 on a Friday morning.   

While Mr Huriwaka was able to find another job about a month later, the dismissal caused him hardship in the meantime, not to mention hurt and humiliation. Perhaps unsurprisingly, a grievance was raised.  Mr Fleming’s engagement with the investigation was minimal and no explanation for the dismissal was given.

Anyway, Authority Member Alyn Higgins ordered Walton Mountain Ltd to pay Mr Huriwaka $6,656 in lost wages (before tax), $15,000 for humiliation, injury to feelings and loss of dignity, and more than likely, a contribution towards his legal costs.

The takeaway here is that making HR decisions whilst on the turps is unlikely to end well.

Tristam Price