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Principles
The Ministry wants a collaborative and inclusive work environment with talented people motivated by a spirit of service
who thrive on complex issues, can see the big picture and inspire others.
Our recruitment and selection processes for a position therefore must:
meet all legislative requirements;
be merit based, giving preference to the candidate best suited to the position considering their relevant skills and
experience (including cultural expertise and experience gained from voluntary and community work);
support diversity and inclusion;
include an expectation on a candidate to bring or be open to developing Māori Crown relations capability (including te
ao Māori, tikanga and kawa, Aotearoa New Zealand history and Te Tiriti o Waitangi | Treaty of Waitangi);
encourage and value workforce agility and the transfer, development and promotion of internal talent within the
Ministry when considering recruitment to a position;
follow a fair and impartial process including minimising unconscious bias and protecting confidentiality and which
enables all candidates to be able to demonstrate their ‘best self’.
Implementing this policy
All staff will be able to view vacancies in the Ministry’s careers hub.
under the Official Information Act 1982
Applicable appointments (being appointments except for appointments of acting or temporary or casual employees, or to
ministerial staff) of successful candidates will be accessible via the appointments intranet page Vacancies and
appointments. Existing employees may raise a complaint about any applicable appointment for review by the Ministry
Internal procedure | Complaints about appointments as per Schedule 8 of the Public Service Act 2020. To do so, an
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employee can email [email address] within 5 working days from the date of the appointment stated on the
appointments intranet page, for Ministry review of their complaint Internal procedure | Complaints about appointments.
The employee’s email should include:
the appointment to which the complaint relates;
the nature and/or grounds for the complaint, and any supporting written material; and
whether the employee wishes to be heard on the matter.
A manager who is hiring (and the successful candidate) will need to be aware that applicable appointments under this
policy are provisional pending the outcome of the Ministry review (as one outcome of a review could be cancellation of the
applicable appointment). The employee will be informed promptly of the outcome of that review.
A manager who is hiring to a position is responsible for leading a rigorous recruitment and selection process and must own
the outcome. This includes complying with the Ministry’s delegations policy Internal policy | Delegations, ensuring the
processes’ compliance with the above principles and:
finalising a job description or job brief (for temporary roles) that captures a realistic view of the position and the work it
entails;
notifying any vacancy which is permanent or with a duration of longer than 6 months using one or more means that
will enable suitably qualified people to apply for the position;
proactively involving other teams within the Ministry on selection panels, where appropriate, and ensuring that the
selection panel composition is diverse, where practicable;
using multiple sources of information when making recruitment decisions so that decisions are not based on only one
source which may end up being unreliable;
communicating with candidates clearly, respectfully and in a timely manner, and prioritising the recruitment process
under the Official Information Act 1982
once commenced;
completing pre employment checks, including as required under the protective security policy Internal policy |
Protective Security.
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To begin the process, the manager contacts the People Team to assist the manager with guidance on the life-cycle of the
recruitment and selection process. Head of Corporate will approve any policy exemptions and the People Team will ensure
a central record is kept of all recruitment processes undertaken and the resulting outcomes.
The Ministry monitors starting salaries to ensure a fair and equitable salary compared with others in similar roles, given the
successful candidate’s level of skills and experience. The Ministry’s remuneration policy is also available here [link to
remuneration policy].
Managers may need to consider the application of our flexible working policy in respect of an appointment [link to flexible
working policy].
Once an appointment is finalised, managers should access the onboarding and induction information from the People
Team.
Related policies and more information
Delegations policy Internal policy | Delegations
Remuneration policy [link to remuneration policy]
Flexible working policy [link to flexible working policy]
Relevant legislation:
under the Official Information Act 1982
Public Service Act 2020
Employment Relations Act 2000
Privacy Act 2020
Human Rights Act 1993
Equal Pay Act 1972
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This procedure does not relate to matters that fall within the Official Information Act 1982 or the Privacy Act 2020 in the
context of requests for review of an appointment – these matters will be addressed in compliance with those statutes see
official information policy Internal policy | Official Information Policy and privacy policy Internal policy | Privacy.
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Context to the procedure
Under clause 4 of Schedule 8 of the Public Service Act, the Ministry is required to notify its employees about appointments
made to the Ministry except for appointments of acting, temporary, or casual employees or to ministerial staff (
applicable
appointments). Any of the Ministry’s employees (the
complainant) may raise a complaint against any applicable
appointment. The Ministry is then to review the applicable appointment in accordance with a procedure approved by the
Public Service Commissioner and which complies with the guidelines prescribed by the Public Service Commissioner.
Information
The notification of an applicable appointment so that such a review may occur is frequently referred to as
promulgation.
All applicable appointments are provisional during promulgation until any review which has been triggered has been
determined.
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Procedure for review of applicable appointments following employee
complaint
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Triggering a review
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Types of complaints
The Public Service Act does not limit the subject matter for a complaint that a complainant may raise about an applicable
appointment. Issues that may trigger a complaint include:
Procedure i.e. was the correct process followed in making the appointment?
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Substance i.e. was the individual ‘best suited’ to the position appointed?
Discrimination i.e. was there discrimination on the basis of gender, cultural background, religion or other prohibited
grounds?
Process for complaints
The process for complaints to be followed by a complainant is notified in the Ministry’s recruitment policy and the
appointments intranet page. A complainant must raise a complaint in writing about an applicable appointment within 5
days of the date of appointment stated on the Ministry’s appointments intranet page (
date of appointment).
The complainant is advised to email the People Team within that period with the following information:
the appointment to which the complaint relates;
the nature and/or grounds for the complaint, and any supporting written material; and
whether the employee wishes to be heard on the matter.
If a complainant uses a different method to raise a complaint, such as raising it with their manager, the manager should
encourage them to use the above process and timeframe. If a complaint is received outside the timeframe or without using
this process, the Secretary for Regulation shall determine whether the complaint should, in any event, proceed to review.
Conducting a review
Time for review
Whenever practicable, reviews should be completed and decisions made within 10 working days from receiving the
complaint. This generally means that promulgation should be able to be completed between 5 working days (if no
under the Official Information Act 1982
complaint is received) and 15 working days of the date of appointment.
Selection of reviewer or review committee
In the Secretary for Regulation’s discretion, a review will be undertaken by either:
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one reviewer agreed upon by the complainant and the Secretary for Regulation; or
a review committee comprised of three members including the convenor, chosen by the Secretary for Regulation.
Background of reviewer and composition of committee
Any individual, whether or not the individual is employed by the Ministry, may be considered by the Secretary for
Regulation for appointment as a reviewer or member of a review committee, unless that individual was involved in the
applicable appointment.
Where a review committee is appointed, where practicable it will have gender, cultural and ethnic diversity appropriate to
the nature of the complaint.
The reviewer or review committee will undertake a conflicts of interest process before commencing in accordance with our
conflicts of interest policy Internal policy | Conflicts of Interest
Matters considered
The reviewer or review committee must consider the appointment recommendation, the job description for the position,
and other specifications for the position as appropriate. Additional material may be considered in the discretion of the
reviewer or the review committee.
Those who wish to make submissions to a reviewer or review committee must be given a reasonable opportunity to make
their presentations.
In many cases, a review may be conducted on the basis of considering the required paperwork together with submissions
from (or interviews with) the complainant, the successful candidate, and others approved by the reviewer or review
committee.
Review not overly formal
under the Official Information Act 1982
Reviewers or review committees must endeavour to avoid:
overly formalised structures and procedures;
an adversarial atmosphere between the complainant and Ministry staff and/or the successful candidate; and
a protracted review period.
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Support persons
Complainants may, at the discretion of the reviewer or review committee, be accompanied by a whānau representative,
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friend, union representative, or other individual. The reviewer or review committee will determine the role of these support
persons.
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Lawyers (except where acting as a support person) will not normally be allowed to represent individuals at a review, as the
Ministry desires to keep the process simple and non-legalistic.
Travel and accommodation expenses
The Secretary for Regulation may determine, in their discretion and in appropriate circumstances, to pay for the reasonable
travel, meal expenses, and/or accommodation expenses of the complainant, the successful candidate, the reviewer or
review committee, and others directly involved in a review.
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Notification of vacancies
Where applicable appointments have been made to vacancies that were not notified using one or more means, the
manager making the appointment must provide the reviewer or review committee, in writing, the reasons that the position
was not notified using one or more means.
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Possible outcomes of a review
Upon completing a review, the reviewer or review committee may recommend to the Secretary for Regulation in writing
any of the following options:
the
confirmation of the applicable appointment;
cancellation of the applicable appointment and re notification;
cancellation of the applicable appointment and re-consideration of the same group of candidates;
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cancellation of the applicable appointment and appointment of the complainant (where the complainant was an
applicant); or
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The Secretary for Regulation will consider the reviewer’s or the review committee’s recommendation and determine
whether to accept it in whole or in part.
The Secretary for Regulation’s decision must be notified to the successful candidate and the complainant as soon as
practicable, followed up in writing to each confirming the decision.
Record-keeping
The People Team will maintain a register of all reviews and their outcomes.
Related policies and more information
Recruitment policy Internal policy | Recruitment
Relevant legislation:
Public Service Act 2020
Official Information Act 1982
Privacy Act 2020
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