New Zealand Legislation: Acts

6 Meaning of employee

• (1) In this Act, unless the context otherwise requires, employee—

  • (a) means any person of any age employed by an employer to do any work for hire or reward under a contract of service; and

  • (b) includes—

    • (i) a homeworker; or

    • (ii) a person intending to work; but

  • (c) excludes a volunteer who—

    • (i) does not expect to be rewarded for work to be performed as a volunteer; and

    • (ii) receives no reward for work performed as a volunteer.

  (2) In deciding for the purposes of subsection (1)(a) whether a person is employed by another person under a contract of service, the court or the Authority (as the case may be) must determine the real nature of the relationship between them.

  (3) For the purposes of subsection (2), the court or the Authority—

  • (a) must consider all relevant matters, including any matters that indicate the intention of the persons; and

  • (b) is not to treat as a determining matter any statement by the persons that describes the nature of their relationship.

  (4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not limit or affect the Real Estate Agents Act 2008 or the Sharemilking Agreements Act 1937.

  (5) The court may, on the application of a union, a Labour Inspector, or 1 or more other persons, by order declare whether the person or persons named in the application are—

  • (a) employees under this Act; or

  • (b) employees or workers within the meaning of any of the Acts specified in section 223(1).

  (6) The court must not make an order under subsection (5) in relation to a person unless—

  • (a) the person—

    • (i) is the applicant; or

    • (ii) has consented in writing to another person applying for the order; and

  • (b) the other person who is alleged to be the employer of the person is a party to the application or has an opportunity to be heard on the application.

  Section 6(4): amended, on 16 November 2009, by section 173 of the Real Estate Agents Act 2008 (2008 No 66).