Know your rights - minimum wage increase
On the 1st of April the minimum wage increased.
The new minimum wage rates, before tax, are:
Adult - $20.00 an hour (up from $18.90)
Starting-out - $16.00 per hour (up from $15.12)
Training - $16.00 per hour (up from $15.12)
If you are currently on minimum wage and have not received an increase then ask your employer why they are paying you less than the minimum wage. It may be easier to do so in writing - you can use the letter template on the Community Law website- see link
If your employer cannot give you an acceptable explanation and will not increase your pay to the legal minimum, you can call the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment on 0800 20 90 20 for further advice.
If you pay staff make sure ...
-If you do have staff on minimum wage, send them a letter or email to let them know about the increase.
-Check that any affected employment contracts are updated.
If you need any further help or advice you can also contact us, by free phone -03 367 222, email , online chat or pop into one of our branches .
Poll: Does the building consent process need to change?
We definitely need homes that are fit to live in but there are often frustrations when it comes to getting consent to modify your own home.
Do you think changes need made to the current process for building consent? Share your thoughts below.
Type 'Not For Print' if you wish your comments to be excluded from the Conversations column of your local paper.
-
91.5% Yes
-
8.2% No
-
0.3% Other - I'll share below!
Food and product recalls
These items have been recalled during the last month. If you have any of these items at home, click on the title to see the details:
Product recalls
Avanti, Malvern Star & Raleigh bicycles
Yoto Kids Speaker
Anko Kids Pyjamas
Battery drill chainsaw attachment
Industrial pedestal misting fan
Yamaha adaptor
Zero Tower safety harness
Naturacoco moisturising cream
Thule child bike seat
Food recalls:
Maketū pies mussel pie
The Catering Studio cottage pie
Matakana Smokehouse gravlax/salmon
Our Fruit Box fruit juices
ProLife Foods value packs - nuts, raisins.
YY Dumplings & Fu Yuan ready-to-eat meat products
Waiheke Herbs italian herb spread
We hope this message was helpful in keeping your household safe.
Say goodbye to tyre waste
About 40% of the 6.5 million tyres Kiwis use every year are recycled, repurposed, or used as tyre-derived fuel. But the rest end up in landfills, stockpiled or dumped.
The good news is now there’s an easy solution to all that tyre waste. It’s called Tyrewise and is New Zealand’s first national tyre recycling scheme.
Tyrewise ensures that tyres in Aotearoa New Zealand are recycled or repurposed properly, saving millions from going to the landfill.
Find out more about the scheme online.