HR software built for New Zealand employment law
RosterElf HR Hub keeps the paperwork New Zealand law actually asks for: a written employment agreement for every employee, wage, time and leave records kept for six years, and leave balances your team can see for themselves.
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Written agreements under Employment Relations Act 2000 s65
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Wage, time and leave records kept the required six years
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Holidays Act leave, ready for the 2028 Employment Leave Act change
Watch how HR Hub saves hours every week
Onboarding, agreements, policies and leave in one place, instead of a folder, a spreadsheet and an inbox.
What the law actually asks you to hold
Most New Zealand HR obligations are record obligations. Each one below names the instrument that creates it, so you can check it against Employment New Zealand rather than take our word for it.
A written employment agreement, before work starts
Employment Relations Act 2000, s65
Every employee must have a written individual employment agreement — there is no exception for casuals, part-timers or family. The agreement must explain in plain language how to resolve an employment relationship problem, including the 90-day period for raising a personal grievance.
Agreed hours recorded in the agreement
Employment Relations Act 2000, s67C
Where hours of work are agreed, they belong in the employment agreement. Where they are not agreed, the agreement must indicate the arrangements for when the employee will work. Zero-hour arrangements without compensation have been unlawful since 1 April 2016.
Wage, time, holiday and leave records for six years
ERA 2000 s130 · Holidays Act 2003 s81
You must keep a wages and time record showing the hours worked each day, the pay for those hours and how it was calculated, plus a holiday and leave record. Both must be kept for at least six years — including after the employee has left — and be accessible to the employee or their representative.
Tell new employees about union membership
Employment Relations Amendment Act 2026
Where a collective agreement covers the work, you must give a new employee information to help them decide about union membership. The Employment Relations Amendment Act 2026, in force 21 February 2026, removed the old rule that a new non-union employee started on collective terms for their first 30 days (ss 62A and 63 repealed) and removed the mandatory "active choice" form — but the duty to provide that information remains.
General information, not legal advice. Check your obligations at employment.govt.nz.
Everything in one employee record
One profile per person, holding the agreement, the policies they have accepted, their certificates and their leave.
Employee onboarding
Collect IRD and KiwiSaver details, issue the employment agreement, and have it signed before the first shift.
Learn moreDigital employment agreements
Every employee must have a written agreement under section 65 — issue, sign and store it in one place.
Learn moreDigital HR records
Wage and time records and holiday and leave records, kept for the six years the law requires.
Learn moreLeave management
Annual holidays, sick leave, bereavement and family violence leave, with balances your staff can see.
Learn morePolicies and procedures
Distribute health and safety and workplace policies, and record who has read and accepted each one.
Learn moreCertificates and licences
Track expiry on the tickets your people need to work, and stop rostering anyone whose has lapsed.
Learn moreOffboarding
Run a consistent exit: final pay, holiday pay, returned property and an exit survey.
Learn moreCulture surveys
Ask your team how work is going, and see the answers by site before people leave.
Learn moreThe obligation that outlasts the employee
Wage and time records and holiday and leave records must be kept for at least six years, and that clock does not stop when someone resigns. A Labour Inspector can ask for the records of a person who left four years ago, and "they took the spreadsheet with them" is not an answer.
What a compliant record actually contains
- Hours worked each day, and the pay for those hours
- Wages paid each pay period, and how they were calculated
- Annual holidays, sick leave and other leave taken
- Leave balances and how they were arrived at
- The employment agreement in force at the time
- Accessible to the employee or their representative
Get your HR paperwork into one place
Start a free trial and see how RosterElf HR Hub holds agreements, policies, certifications and leave against one employee record.
HR guides for New Zealand employers
Practical reading on employment agreements, leave and record keeping.
Employee lifecycle records: from onboarding to exit
What to record at each stage of employment, and what to keep once someone leaves.
Read article
Digital HR policies and contracts explained
Moving policies and agreements online, and recording who accepted what.
Read article
How to track and manage employee leave balances
How leave accrues, why balances drift, and how to keep them defensible.
Read articleNew Zealand HR software FAQ
- Two sets. A wages and time record under section 130 of the Employment Relations Act 2000, showing the hours each employee worked each day, the pay for those hours and how it was calculated. And a holiday and leave record under section 81 of the Holidays Act 2003. Both must be kept for at least six years — including after someone leaves — and made accessible to the employee or their representative. The holiday and leave record may be kept as part of the wages and time record.
- Yes. Section 65 of the Employment Relations Act 2000 requires a written individual employment agreement, and there is no exception for casual employees, part-timers or family members. It must be provided before employment starts, and the employee must be given a reasonable opportunity to seek independent advice before signing. Failing to provide one is a breach the Labour Inspectorate can penalise.
- No, and it should not be. Australia has modern awards, the Fair Work Commission and superannuation; New Zealand has the Employment Relations Act 2000, the Holidays Act 2003, Employment New Zealand and KiwiSaver. RosterElf runs on New Zealand rules on this site — the record-keeping, leave and agreement requirements above are the New Zealand ones.
- The Employment Leave Act 2026 replaces the Holidays Act 2003 on 6 August 2028 and moves annual leave from a weeks-based entitlement to hours-based accrual. It is the largest change to New Zealand leave administration in two decades, and it is a reason to get leave records into a system that can be re-based rather than a spreadsheet.