Labour Inspector – Employment Services

Tēnei tūranga – About the role

The Labour Inspector position is a team member position in MBIE’s Employment Services branch and will bring their business understanding and perspective to work in partnership with their manager, other staff within the Labour Inspectorate, and other staff within MBIE.

The Labour Inspector is responsible for:

• Detecting and addressing non-compliance with employment standards legislation.
• Enforcing compliance with minimum employment standards.

Ngā herenga – Requirements of the role

Personal specifications

• Enforcement experience and the ability to use ‘authority’ and ‘bounded discretion’ appropriately, is desirable but not essential.
• Ability to influence and adapt conflict resolution approaches including cultural protocols in relation to people from different backgrounds.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to articulate complex messages clearly, simply, and concisely.
• Experience in the interpretation and application of employment legislation and/or a high level of knowledge and skill working in the industrial relations context.
• A high level of recurrent experience working with relevant New Zealand employment relations legislation, system, and principles and/or human resources practices.
• Experience in project coordination.
• A high awareness of social, Governmental, and other pressures likely to impact on the way workplaces and employment relations are structed and operated.
• A Commitment to, and understanding of EEO principles, and practices, culture and gender differences, and an understanding of the implications of those differences for employment relationships and problem resolution.
• An understanding of New Zealand’s fundamental principles and commitment to the Treaty of Waitangi and the issues which may impact on Māori in the Labour Market.
• Able to work positively and even handed with a variety of people and groups and not be easily persuaded by single interests that may not be based on evidence-based information.
• Able to listen empathetically while remaining impartial.
• Ability to effectively manage conflict and aggression.
• Demonstrated ability to logically analyse problems and complex data and quickly develop a practical solution or appropriate course of action.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office suite.

Prerequisites

• Must have the legal right to live and work in New Zealand.

Takohanga tuhinga o mua – Key accountabilities and deliverables

Critical areas of success

The Labour Inspector will be required to deliver results in the following areas:

• Contributing to the day-to-day work of the team.
• Understanding the strategic direction and how their work supports this.
• Managing a range of relationships and networks to support a collaborative approach to achievement of common goals.

Investigation and enforcement

Conduct reactive and proactive investigations relating to ‘minimum employment standards’ by:

• Planning the investigation or operation ensuring effective and prompt decisions are made at every stage.
• Understanding relevant legislation and applying this and operational policies in a proportionate and consistent manner.
• Assessing whether it is appropriate to involve other parts of MBIE or other regulators.
• Establishing the facts based on interviews with the employer and the employee and any other relevant parties.
• Collecting evidence, such as wage, time and holiday records and employment agreements.
• Identifying and collecting evidence necessary to prove breaches and intentions of parties and identify gaps in evidence and areas of potential challenge so that enforcement activity has the greatest chance of success.
• Analysing complex data and information to reach conclusions.
• Identifying the appropriate enforcement action to effectively use enforcement tools to create high impact and change in business practices.
• Writing investigation plans, investigation reports, and correspondence to interested parties, and enforcement documents.
• Appearing in the Employment Relations Authority or the Employment Court to give evidence.
• Recording all transactions on the case management system.
• Ensuring that information collected is fed into the MBIE Intelligence system.
• Providing helpful and timely information to others in the organisation.
• Maintaining an in-depth knowledge of and following and applying agreed business processes and practice guidance.
• Actively contributing to the collective review and development of new processes and resources.

Building workplace practice

• Providing guidance such as reference material and website links to parties on obligations and resources available to support them.
• Understanding our role and when to refer parties to other services.
• Simplifying sometimes complex employment scenarios.
• Understanding the why, and how the various components of the employment system work together to achieve strategic outcomes.
• Assist the Information and Education function of Employment Services with presentations on minimum standards when required.
• Assess and process minimum wage exemption applications and manage relationships with business enterprises, employee advocates and open employment employers.

Relationship management

• Build and manage strong relationships with other staff in the Labour Inspectorate, Employment Services, the wider Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment, and other regulatory agencies.
• Develop and manage community relationships to support organisational strategies, including the Maori, Pacific, and Disability strategies.

Data management, research, analysis

The Labour Inspector contributes to and makes use of the MBIE intelligence system by:

• Making risk-based, intelligence-led decisions.
• Researching intelligence information and applying that to a range of situations.
• Using data effectively and knowing how to incorporate this into operational activity.
• Identifying where trends or more systemic issues may exist.
• Applying the principles of the Privacy Act, Official Information Act, Public Records Act, and other relevant legislation when documenting and sharing information.

Culture awareness

• The Labour Inspector is expected to embrace diversity within the team and ensure cultural or other needs are taken into account when planning for and conducting interactions externally.

Wellbeing, health & safety

• Displays commitment through actively supporting all safety and wellbeing initiatives.
• Ensures own and others safety at all times.
• Complies with relevant safety and wellbeing policies, procedures, safe systems of work and event reporting.
• Reports all incidents/accidents, including near misses in a timely fashion.
• Is involved in health and safety through participation and consultation.

Tō tūranga i roto i te Manatū – Your place in the Ministry

The Labour Inspector position reports into the Labour Inspectorate Manager within the Employment Services branch. The branch sits within the Te Whakatairanga Service Delivery group.

More information about MBIE's structure

To mātou aronga – What we do for Aotearoa New Zealand

Hīkina Whakatutuki is the te reo Māori name for the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment. Hīkina means to uplift. Whakatutuki means to move forward, to make successful. Our name speaks to our purpose, Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All.

To Grow Aotearoa New Zealand for All, we put people at the heart of our mahi. Based on the principles of Te Tiriti o Waitangi / The Treaty of Waitangi, we are committed to upholding authentic partnerships with Māori.

As agile public service leaders, we use our breadth and experience to navigate the ever-changing world. We are service providers, policy makers, investors and regulators. We engage with diverse communities, businesses and regions. Our work touches on the daily lives of New Zealanders. We grow opportunities (Puāwai), guard and protect (Kaihāpai) and innovate and navigate towards a better future (Auaha).

Ngā matatau – Our competencies

Cultivates innovation We create new and better ways for the organisation to be successful by challenging the status quo generating new and creative ideas and translating them into workable solutions.

Nimble learning We are curious and actively learn through experimentation when tackling new problems by learning as we go when facing new situations and challenges.

Customer focus We build strong customer relationships and deliver customer-centric solutions by listening and gaining insights into the needs of the communities we serve and actively seeking and responding to feedback.

Decision quality We make quality and timely decisions that shape the future for our communities and keep the organisation moving forward by relying on an appropriate mix of analysis, wisdom, experience, and judgement to make valid and reliable decisions.

Action oriented We step up, taking on new opportunities and tough challenges with purpose, urgency and discipline by taking responsibility, ownership and action on challenges, and being accountable for the results.

Collaborates We connect, working together to build partnerships with our communities, working collaboratively to meet shared objectives by gaining trust and support of others; actively seeking the views, experiences, and opinions of others and by working co-operatively with others across MBIE, the public sector and external stakeholder groups.

Te Tiriti o Waitangi

As an agency of the public service, MBIE has a responsibility to contribute to the Crown meeting its obligations under Te Tiriti o Waitangi (Te Tiriti). Meeting our commitment to Te Tiriti will contribute towards us realising the overall aims of Te Ara Amiorangi – Our Path, Our Direction, and achieve the outcome of Growing New Zealand for All. The principles of Te Tiriti - including partnership, good faith, and active protection – are at the core of our work. MBIE is committed to delivering on our obligations as a Treaty partner with authenticity and integrity and to enable Māori interests. We are committed to ensuring that MBIE is well placed to meet our obligations under the Public Service Act 2020 (Te Ao Tūmatanui) to support the Crown in strengthening the Māori/Crown Relationship under the Treaty and to build MBIE’s capability, capacity and cultural intelligence to deliver this.

Mahi i roto i te Ratonga Tūmatanui – Working in the public service

Ka mahitahi mātou o te ratonga tūmatanui kia hei painga mō ngā tāngata o Aotearoa i āianei, ā, hei ngā rā ki tua hoki. He kawenga tino whaitake tā mātou hei tautoko i te Karauna i runga i āna hononga ki a ngāi Māori i raro i te Tiriti o Waitangi. Ka tautoko mātou i te kāwanatanga manapori. Ka whakakotahingia mātou e te wairua whakarato ki ō mātou hapori, ā, e arahina ana mātou e ngā mātāpono me ngā tikanga matua o te ratonga tūmatanui i roto i ā mātou mahi.

In the public service we work collectively to make a meaningful difference for New Zealanders now and in the future. We have an important role in supporting the Crown in its relationships with Māori under the Treaty of Waitangi. We support democratic government. We are unified by a spirit of service to our communities and guided by the core principles and values of the public service in our work.

What does it mean to work in Aotearoa New Zealand’s Public Service?(external link) — Te Kawa Mataaho The Public Service Commission