Restaurant Association The Thymes newsletter (March/April 2016)

MAY 2015 MARCH / APRIL 2016

PHOTOS: BISTRONOMY, Napier

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

05 reservation dogs top 20 faq's

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From meal breaks, to sick leave, annual leave requests to cashing up leave - we've compiled a list of our top 20 Helpline queries and pick a selection of these to answer for you in this issue.

17 employment agreements under the microscope The Employment Standards Legislation Bill will amend a number of key pieces of employment legislation. The Bill aims to promote fairness in workplaces by enhancing protections and benefits for all.

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getting your food control plan sorted

CONFIDENTIAL - MEMBERS ONLY

SHOULD THE USER PAY ON CREDIT CARD PAYMENTS?

Has the hospitality industry reached a point where it is appropriate to advocate for a industry-wide credit card surcharges to be added to the customer’s bill?

For the Restaurant Association this topic has recently come to the forefront through discussions with some of our members advocating for this change and as a result of recent merchant rate increases across all of the banks.

As a result we are trying to gauge the overall viewpoint of the industry on this topic. A survey of our members indicates that only 7% of operations currently ever apply a credit card surcharge and of those that do, it is generally only for large functions such as weddings or large group bookings where it is felt that it is more fair to put the cost back to the consumers. In hospitality it is not yet being adopted as a ‘standard’ measure for all credit card transactions, with general opinion from the survey seeming to indicate that this would offend and lose customers. CONTINUED

It is also felt that unless it became an industry-wide initiative not all businesses would charge it and therefore some would use it as a competitive marketing ploy. One of the other arguments against a surcharge is that these fees should be built into our pricing, so that menu prices include enough margin to cover the additional cost that is imposed on businesses due to credit card commissions.

Historically, when businesses were not legally allowed to on-charge this cost, it was simply treated is a cost of doing business and managed as such.

However, we are now faced with credit card surcharges all the time imposed by other industries – from paying our rates online, to booking concert tickets or that overseas flight – and the consumer discussion around this seems to be accepting of this extra charge as simply a way these companies are passing on the credit card merchant fee.

Tourism operators and hotels are also more commonly adopting the charge, so why then do we feel it would be so negatively received by our customers? What of that small percentage that have already started applying the surcharge? They say consumer response, while there may be a few niggles, is generally neutral.

What are the rules around adding a ‘credit card surcharge’?

Since 2009 merchants have been allowed to charge a surcharge when a customer pays by credit card. It was anticipated that allowing surcharges would provide more transparency on the credit card companies’ fees and eventually bring them down. In theory prices should have come down at those businesses that have been imposing a credit card fee as they are able to recoup that business expense. However, that doesn’t appear to have been the case. In addition there have been some concerns that some merchants have set their surcharges at a level that does not reflect their actual cost of accepting credit cards.

A surcharge designed to generate a profit or cover noncredit card related costs risks infringing the Fair Trading Act. This brings up a notable discovery from our member survey – almost 25% of the respondents indicated that they did not know what merchant rate they currently pay for credit card transactions.

Adding to the discussion is the growing numbers of consumers choosing to go contactless. Merchants pay credit card fees for both credit and debit cards when they are processed as a contactless payment.

Increasing numbers of consumers are choosing to use their contactless cards for small purchases they would have previously paid for with eftpos, because of the ease of the transaction for them. Of course because of the fees many businesses have chosen not to accept contactless payments yet, but they could be forced to if consumers start to expect it.

There may be a small groundswell advocating for an industry-led initiative around credit card surcharges, as just over 40% of our survey respondents indicated that they have considered credit card surcharges for the future. Many are reluctant to move unless it becomes more common place first.

What next?

The Restaurant Association would welcome any further feedback on the topic – your views either for or against – as it will lend weight to our discussions with the credit card companies.

If you do want to add a surcharge for your customers paying by credit card here are some points to note: • You must disclose your surcharge policy before any purchase is made, so consider having a sign near the entrance (perhaps), on menus and at the point of sale (definitely). It should never be a surprise for your customer as this could create negativity from them if the fee is not managed transparently.

• Surcharge fees should also be disclosed on every receipt as a separate item, so that the clarity of the on-charge is intact.

• If you are adding a surcharge to recoup the merchant fee charged to you, then the surcharge should not exceed this rate. For instance, if your merchant fee is 1.8%, your credit card surcharge should not exceed this amount, otherwise your argument that you are simply passing on the cost loses credence.

es rcharg und su o r a n ersatio tions. e conv c d to th card transa d a s t n payme rd and debit s s le t contac oth credit ca acing s embr harged for b r e m u are c Cons chants need help? call us on 0800 73 as mer

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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FROM THE CEO’S DESK

MARCH WAS A MONTH FILLED WITH OFF-HAND COMMENTS FROM POLITICIANS ABOUT OUR INDUSTRY HAVING TOO MANY FOREIGN CHEFS AND OTHER BLANKET STATEMENTS ABOUT RESTAURANTS BEING A FRONT FOR IMMIGRATION FRAUD. THIS SHOWS A KEEN LACK OF UNDERSTANDING FOR THE PRESSURES MANY OF OUR OPERATORS ARE UNDER IN TRYING TO RECRUIT SUITABLE TRAINED STAFF.

W MARISA BIDOIS, CEO Restaurant Association of NZ 09 632 1400 marisa@restaurantnz.co.nz www.restaurantnz.co.nz Restaurant-Associationof-New-Zealand restaurantnz

e in no way condone unsavoury scams taking away workers basic rights but we do have a problem with statements with no clarification about the context - in other words damning the whole industry. The labour shortage is undoubtedly the key issue for the hospitality industry as unsuccessful efforts to recruit staff continues to escalate. We are committed to working on new initiatives that address our skill shortage problems and encourage further industry growth, but comments from leaders like, it’s time to “turn off the tap” (of migrant workers) are extremely damaging to our industry’s efforts.

MERCHANT FEES Members have been in touch with the Association regularly to discuss rising merchant fees and the questions about whether the industry should pass these costs onto the customer. We have included the results of a follow up survey about this issue which outlines some interesting results.

TOP TWENTY QUESTIONS Our main focus for this issue and the next few is to address our top questions from members. The majority of these questions relate to employment law and we attempt to demystify this for you with straight up explanations and answers.

We encourage you to always call the help line or email us when dealing with these sorts of issues. As I always say, it’s better to be safe than sorry.

We are teaming up with Business NZ and the NZ Payroll Association to call for a review of the Holidays Act. The majority of our industry works on a rostered basis and rarely work on the same days every week. The Act is reasonably straightforward if your employees work Monday to Friday on a standard eight hour day. If not, it can be a minefield of quite complicated and frustrating formulas!

EVENTS We are also building up to our regional awards season, so do keep an eye out for your local awards platform. We are currently working on a number of these (some new) around the regions, so if you would like to be involved be sure to call our Event Manager Vanessa Wallace. Be sure to check out all the Road Shows coming to a town near you. They are proving to be very popular. We also have the Barista Smackdown competition coming up, which will be held at Fine Food New Zealand in June. Registration for this event has now opened.

MARISA

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THE THYMES MARCH 2016

04

PRESIDENT'S VIEWPOINT

RESERVATION DOGS WHILST CUSTOMERS ASSUME WE ARE JUST IN THE BUSINESS OF SELLING FOOD, WE ARE ALSO IN THE BUSINESS OF RENTING CHAIRS TO PEOPLE WHO EAT FOOD. IN ORDER TO MAXIMISE REVENUE IDEALLY WE LIKE ALL OF OUR SEATS OCCUPIED FROM THE BEGINNING TO THE END OF SERVICE WITH HUNGRY AND THIRSTY GUESTS.

MIKE EGAN, National President Restaurant Association of NZ mike@monsoonpoon.co.nz

W

hilst of course many restaurants accept reservations at any time their revenue can be limited by having seats empty at the beginning of service or at the end of service as often the most popular bookings time slots in the evening are around 7pm-8pm.

Restaurants can try to mitigate this bottle neck by having two sitting times such as 6.30 and 8.30 this however does create pressure on service with potentially the restaurant being filled twice all at once which can unduly stress the front and back of house.

Other strategies to maximise occupancy are the offer of a “deal” available only at an off peak time.

This dynamic pricing is how airlines and hotels work however they have complex algorithms that constantly update pricing hundreds of times a day whereas a restaurants price differential is usually just a simple early dining offer.

One of the major issues with running a reservation system is the matter of reservation no-shows which has a major impact on the profitability on our industry.

Third party restaurant reservation websites such as Dimmi in Australia and Open Table in the USA report no–shows being between 4% and 20% of all bookings made on their sites.

This is obviously unacceptable and they are now starting to ban people who are frequent no-shows from using their service. Though they would only be able to identify a no-show if the restaurant can be bothered reporting them. Banning also does not make up for the lost revenue and it would seem to be easy to circumvent by re-registering with another user name.

Highlighting this problem the Sydney Morning Herald recently published an article on the issue and the fact that Dimmi has just banned 3000 users who have been consistent no-shows at restaurants that they take reservations for.

Restaurants are always trying to mitigate this loss of revenue with constant communication with customers which may entail any number of re-confirmation phone calls or emails.

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THE THYMES MARCH 2016

05

This takes up significant resources and is no actual guarantee that they will turn up at the agreed time with the same number of guests they booked for. Guests of course can have genuine reasons for not honouring a booking but with such small profit margins any loss of revenue can have a major impact on viability.

No Reservations

Restaurants however are adapting their business model to deal with this loss of revenue. Some are adopting a “Ticket System”, just like you buy a ticket for a show or movie, you prepay for a ticket to dine at a restaurant at a certain time slot and with a minimum spend. You don’t turn up they don’t care as you have been charged and have agreed to a no refund policy.

The no reservation policy fits well with the busy work and social lives of the modern customer, as often they don’t want to be tied to a time slot to dine that may have to be booked days in advance. They often may even not know what their dining requirements are from one day to the next.

This works well for high demand restaurants whereby the numbers of potential guests that may balk at this are more than covered by large numbers of customers who are happy with this system as they have every intention of honouring a reservation.

Nick Kokonas, the co-owner of the famed Chicago restaurants; Alenia, Next and Aviary has developed a ticketing booking system called Tock, which also features dynamic pricing. So a booking a table at 5pm on a Tuesday is going to cost you less than 7.30pm on a Saturday. Previously he was losing $260K on no-shows and had a cost of $140K in wages for reservation staff.

This new platform seems to be working very well for them and they are also selling the software to other restaurants with over 1000 signed up and unlike third party booking systems they charge the restaurant no further fees. Open Table for instance charges $1 per booking and they retain all the information on your guest whereas the Tock system is controlled by the individual restaurant.

This is the calculation of their revenue and savings:

The other option of course is not to take reservations and this is becoming much more common, though restaurants such as the famed Boulcott Street Bistro, in Wellington, have not taken dinner reservations since 1991.

Whilst restaurants that take reservations can be fully booked, a restaurant that does not reserve means even if you make last minute plans you will always get a meal, you just wait your turn if all the tables are occupied and often can have a drink and snack in their bar.

No reservations also means less pressure on prices as revenue is maximised and the cost of no-shows and the labour cost of running a reservation system is removed.

Mix it Up There is a third model and that is a hybrid of accepting reservations for a portion of the restaurant and saving a number of seats for walk in guests. Two MBA students at Wharton School recently modeled this system in a paper called Pricing Restaurant Reservations: dealing with No-Shows and concluded that this amalgam of accepting some reservations and allocating tables for walk in guests was the optimal system. However they also concluded for it to work optimally it required a no-show penalty in return for what they called the no-wait guarantee.

They also concluded that when the restaurant faced a larger potential market, it should allocate less capacity for reservations and then when it exceeded a certain threshold of customer demand it is better off if it stops taking all reservations.

Every reservation system of course has its advantages and disadvantages and has to work to suit your target market and brand. If you operate a white table cloth operation that accepts reservations at any time then you have to build into your pricing a contingency to cover the no-shows and extra labour.

Restaurants can also operate a mix of any of these 3 options by say accepting reservations for lunch only but not for dinner or take bookings for parties of a certain size or at a suitable off peak time.

Whilst in an ideal world every reservation would be honoured and we would all be full from open to close, this is not the reality and we need to use systems and policies that give us the best opportunity to collect as much rent as we can from our chairs.

MIKE

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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FREQUENTLY

ASKED...

We've compiled a list of our top 20 Helpline queries and pick a selection of these to answer for you in this issue. You can also check out www.restaurantnz.co.nz for answers to more of these common FAQ's, or give the Helpline a call.

For many businesses the financial end of year is upon us.

While this can be a busy and potentially stressful time of year, it is also a good time to reassess your business and make some changes to set yourself on the right path for the next financial year. In this section we identify five different areas of your business - finance, technology, customer service, business structure and that all important work / life balance.

Rather than initialising a complete overhaul of your business these articles offer practical tips on achieving some new goals.

YOUR TOP 20...

1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

My employee has left without notice/not given the required notice period. What can I do? Can I make a wage deduction?

What breaks do I have to give my staff now? check out page 9 I have a staff member who always calls in sick and it is affecting my business. What can I do? page 10 My employee has asked to “cash up” some holiday pay. Is this legal? page 11 My employee has gone on ACC and I don’t know when they are coming back to work. Do I have to hold their job open indefinitely?

My employee has not turned up to two shifts now.

Have they effectively abandoned their employment? check out The Thymes February 2016 Can I instantly dismiss someone for serious misconduct?

My chef wants to be a contractor instead of an employee.

Should I agree to this?

Do I have to pay my staff if I choose to close on public holidays? page 12 My employee has applied for leave but I need them in the business. Do I have to approve it? page 13 My employee is full-time but she now wants to study and work part-time. Do I have to agree to this?

My employee is resigning but doesn’t want to work out their notice period. Do I have to pay the notice period out?

I am not happy with my employee’s performance. Can I give them a written warning?

What is the difference between misconduct and serious misconduct?

Do I have to support my employee’s application for a work visa?

My employee is on their 90 day trial period. Can I just tell them it is not working out and ask them not to come back?

What do I do if I have a food poisoning complaint? check out The Thymes February 2016 My employee has been caught taking from the tip jar.

What do I do?

My employee’s role has changed. Do I have to give them a whole new employment agreement? page 13 How do I work out what an “otherwise working day” is for an employee? check out page 14

NEED HELP? Call us on 0800 737 827

THE THYMES NOVEMBER 2015

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TAKE A BREAK

WHAT BREAKS DO I HAVE TO GIVE MY STAFF NOW? Since March last year legislation around meal and rest breaks was amended to allow for more flexibility for workplaces around when employees take their breaks. It has meant however that some businesses are now unsure about when and how best to deal with breaks in their operation.

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efore, the law was prescriptive: employees were entitled to a set number of breaks for specified durations depending on the number of hours worked.

Now that prescribed number and duration of breaks has been removed. The obligation on an employer is instead to provide rest and meal breaks that provide a ‘reasonable opportunity during an employee’s work period for rest, refreshment, and attention to personal matters’, and which are appropriate for the length of time they have been at work.

Employees still get breaks but you can agree when and how long these breaks are (and importantly, ensure that breaks don’t coincide with busy service periods).

While the Restaurant Association’s newest employment agreement template has been amended to emphasize this flexibility, the new rules around breaks can't be enforced unless existing rest and meal break provisions in older employment agreements are varied. The Restaurant Association can provide you with a one page employment agreement variation to do this.

Like all employment matters, employers and employees should negotiate in good faith, so if an employee wants to discuss the workplace’s break policy and propose an alternative, try to come to a reasonable agreement.

However, if you cannot agree, the employer has the right to set reasonable times and lengths of breaks for their employees.

WHAT IS APPROPRIATE NOW? Good practice for determining what breaks are provided, when and for how long, takes into account: • how long the employee’s work period is • the nature of the employee’s work • any health and safety issues related to the work, for example fatigue • the time of day or night that the employee’s work period starts • the interests of the employee – e.g. to allow enough time for rest, refreshment and to take care of personal matters • the employer’s operational environment or resources – eg does the employer need employees to take their breaks in stages or according to a roster, in order to continue production or services?

It is still up to the individual business, however common practice would still be for a rest break to be for a duration of between 10 - 15 minutes and occur when an employee has worked for between 2-4 hours. Rest breaks are typically paid. Meal breaks are longer and typically unpaid. Employees would usually receive a 30 minute meal break (along with a 10 minute rest break) after working for 4-6 hours. It is best to emphasize that this will vary if any of these timings fall over the busy service periods (unless you can accommodate their absence over this time). Often times the break between split shifts allows an adequate meal break.

An employer does not have to give breaks if breaks cannot reasonably be given, considering the nature of an employee’s work. However employers must compensate employees if this happens. As there are generally ebbs and flows over the length of a shift, we are not of the view that you would be able to argue that a hospitality worker cannot reasonably be given a break because the business is busy.

One of the key things to note is that employees do still remain entitled to breaks and from a health and safety perspective it is important they take them. The changes have not taken breaks away but allow you to decide when is the most appropriate time for them to be taken, and for how long, for your business.

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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SICK...AGAIN

I have an employee who calls in

sick all the time. What should I do?

Dealing with absenteeism is a major challenge in our industry. When absenteeism rates are high, wage costs go up and service levels are negatively affected. There are also intangible costs to the business such as increased stress levels for the team and a decrease in morale, along with increased administration. So what should you do if you have an employee who continually calls in sick?

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ddressing absenteeism in your business does not only require that you deal with the individual who frequently calls in sick, it also requires you to clearly communicate your expectations and policies concerning sick leave to your whole team. It is important that you discuss the issue of absenteeism with the whole team if it is starting to negatively impact the business. Staff meetings are an ideal time to do this. The following tips will help you manage absenteeism within your business.

1HAVE A SICKNESS/ATTENDANCE POLICY

You should have a policy detailing what staff need to do if they are unable to work because of illness. For example, is a text okay, or do they need to phone you? Do they need to contact you directly or is it okay to contact the manager/supervisor on duty?

How far in advance would you expect an employee to call you to let you know that they are sick? When may an employee be expected to provide proof of illness/injury? This policy should clearly set out your expectations and should be explained to each employee before they begin working with you.

TRACK OF ATTENDANCE/FOLLOW-UP WITH 2KEEP STAFF

Be sure to keep track of attendance and follow-up with your staff about their absences. If you see a pattern developing, be sure to speak to the employee in question. It is important to nip these emerging issues in the bud, before they become a real problem.

3ASK FOR PROOF OF SICKNESS

The Holidays Act 2003 gives employers the legal right to request proof of sickness or injury (ie a medical certificate) from an employee if they have been away from work for a period of three or more calendar days (not necessarily working days). You can also request a medical certificate within the three days using the following provisions: you must inform the employee as early as possible that proof is required and you must also meet the employee’s reasonable expenses in obtaining the proof. If you have concerns that the employee’s sickness claim is ingenuine, you may wish to exercise this right.

4MEET WITH EMPLOYEES INDIVIDUALLY

If an employee is taking a large amount of sick days or their sick leave has a “pattern” to it (for example, they call in sick every second Sunday), you should meet with him/her to discuss this. Show him/her the attendance records that you have kept and get their feedback on this. You are entitled to seek information about whether they have an on-going health concern. If the sick days are not genuine, then letting the employee know that you are keeping track of attendance should have a positive impact on the situation, as the employee is less likely to continue to pull “sickies.” If the employee does have genuine health concerns, it is important that you discuss these with the employee and try and work out a way forward that works for both parties. If your employee does have an on-going health concern that means that they are frequently absent and this is in turn affecting your business, you may be dealing with an “incapacity” situation. To address such a situation, you will need to follow a formal process, involving several meetings with the employee in question.

Please call the Restaurant Association Helpline on 0800 737 827 if you a dealing with a situation like this.

We'll also be covering absence due to an incapacity situation in the next issue of The Thymes.

need help? call us on 0800 737 827

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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"I WANT THE MONEY" mY EMPLOYEE WANTS TO 'CASH UP' SOME OF THEIR LEAVE. IS THIS LEGAL?

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es, since 2011 employees can request to swap up to 1 week of their annual leave for cash each year — up to 5 days for a regular 5-day week, or one quarter of their annual entitlement if they don't.

Cashing up annual holidays can only be at the employee’s request and the request must be made in writing, so an employer can’t pressure an employee to cashing up a portion of their leave, nor can it be part of salary negotiations.

An employee can ask to cash in leave multiple times a year, as long as the total they cash in isn't more than a quarter of their total leave allowance for the year.

What if you’d prefer that your employees take the leave instead? Employers may have a workplace policy that they will not consider any requests to cash up annual holidays. This can apply to the whole or only some parts of the business.

The policy can only address whether the employer will consider any requests. It cannot be about the amount of annual holidays an employee can cash up or the number of requests an employee may make. If you don’t have such a policy for the workplace, you must consider any request to cash up annual holidays in good faith and consider it in a timely manner. Even if requested you still have the right to decline the request, and you don’t need to give a reason why, but you do have to let them know in writing.

What if the employee wants to cash up more than one week per annum of their statutory annual leave - can you agree to that? No! Only a maximum of one week can be paid out from the statutory leave entitlement.

HAVE THE DAY OFF! I’ve decided to close the business for the holiday weekend. who do I pay?

This is a common question when there is a block of more than one public holiday, say over Christmas, New Year, or Easter, and an employer decides to close not only on the statutory public holidays, but also some extra days to give their employees a few days off.

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s an example, over Easter we noticed some businesses choose to close on Good Friday and Easter Monday (the two public holidays over that period), but also on Easter Sunday (which is not a public holiday).

Can you just tell your staff you are closing on that day and that no-one will be rostered on and leave it at that?

Not really. Let’s take this step by step.

1. Who gets paid if you decide to close on a public holiday?

An employee would get paid for the public holiday, even if they don’t work it because you are closed, if that day falls on a “normal day of work for them”.

They are entitled to be paid their ‘relevant daily pay’ or ‘average daily pay’ – that’s at normal rates; you only get paid time and a half if you actually work on a public holiday.

You’ll first need to establish whether the public holidays falls on a day that the employee would typically work and our “otherwise working day” article on the pages following goes into this in more detail.

Once you’ve established that it is a normal day of work for the employee in question they are entitled to paid for the public holiday. This payment is not to be taken from their annual leave entitlement. Please note, that the same rules apply for an employee who doesn’t work the public holiday if for example they have requested, and you have granted, the day off.

If this day falls on a normal day of work for them, they will still be entitled to be paid.

to be paid for the day as it is the business’ choice to close, not theirs. They had every expectation they would be working that ‘Sunday’ as they usually do!

What are your options then?

You could organise an annual closedown for the business by giving your staff at least 14 days notice and as a result direct employees to take that day off as an annual leave day, or, if they don’t have any annual leave owing, to take the day off as unpaid leave (or pay them leave in advance of their entitlement). Employers may implement one such closure per year. What if you’ve already had your annual closedown this year? If both the employer and the employee agree, employers may close their operation and discontinue the work of employees at other times, but the employer cannot require the employees to take annual holidays for a second closedown. If there are other closedowns the employer and employees will have to agree to the arrangements that will apply (often times you may find that when discussed with employees they will be happy to have the time off as annual leave days).

Any public holidays that fall over the closedown period will still be treated as public holidays however – you can’t direct employees to take a public holiday day as annual leave.

An employee who does not normally work on the day of the week in question, and who does not work on the public holiday day, is not entitled to a payment for that day. For example, a part-time employee who never works on Friday has no entitlement to payment for Good Friday.

2. What if you decide to close an extra day and give

everyone the extra day off?

If you decide to close the business for a day that you are usually open, employees who normally work on that day in question (eg, Sundays) would be entitled

need help? call us on 0800 737 827

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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"I'M GOING AWAY"

My employee has ASKED FOR two weeks leave right during our busy season -can I decline?

Y

es. If the employee has not continuously worked for the business for twelve months then according to the Holidays Act their entitlement to take leave has not become available. To clarify, this does not mean that if the employee resigned and left the business they would not be entitled to be paid out their holiday pay. What it means, is that the employee is not eligible to take leave from the business. Many payroll systems do not represent this correctly and show the annual leave entitlement in days as they accumulate, but in reality until the employee does twelve months service leave is not available to them. Many employers will allow employees to take leave in advance of their entitlement but you are under no obligation to approve this.

However, when they have completed twelve months service, you must allow them to take leave within the following twelve months if they request it. The time when they take the leave must be agreed upon by both parties.

This means that you can deny leave if an employee asks to take leave during a busy period but you must allow them to take the leave at another time.

What is reasonable depends on the context. For example, it may depend on the business’s needs, the seasonal nature of the work and other factors that should be considered are the nature of the leave for the employee.

Employees must also have the opportunity to take two weeks of that leave continuously.

If leave cannot be agreed upon, an employer can direct an employee to take leave (this might happen in a closedown situation) but you must provide fourteen days’ notice to the employee, preferably in writing. As a business owner, it is a good idea to let employees know when they are going through the recruitment process if there are any times of the year that the business shuts down, or periods during which leave will not be approved.

This should also be outlined in your house rules.

Another point to add to your house rules is the leave request process. For example, how much notice you require for a leave request.

MY EMPLOYEE'S ROLE HAS CHANGED.

do they need a new agreement?

G

enerally speaking, in order to make changes to an individual employment agreement, both parties to the agreement (the employee and the employer) need to consent to any such changes. Therefore, if an employer wishes to change an aspect of an employee’s employment agreement, for example, their hours of work, they must have a genuine reason, must follow a fair and reasonable process, and get the employee’s agreement to do this.

study and as a result (at their request) you have agreed to a change of their work role and hours. If by mutual agreement the terms of your employee’s employment have changed, their employment agreement should be amended. This will not usually require you to issue a whole new employment agreement, rather a “variation to the employment agreement” can be provided and signed by both parties, amending the parts of your employee’s employment terms that have changed.

But sometimes employment agreements change by mutual agreement between an employer and employee - for instance your full-time chef has now gone back to

The Restaurant Association has a variation to employment template that we can provide you to use in this situation.

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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DO THEY USUALLY WORK? how do I work out IF a public holiday falls on A NORMAL DAY OF WORK FOR AN EMPLOYEE? What would ‘otherwise be a working day’ is a concept used to determine an employee’s entitlement to public holidays, alternative holidays, sick leave and bereavement leave. The principle behind what would otherwise be a working day is that, but for the day away from work (due to it being a public holiday, or the employee being sick or bereaved), the employee would have worked, and should therefore be paid for that day.

O

f course when working patterns or rosters are constant, whether a day would otherwise be a working day is clear to both the employer and employee.

This might be the case for a full-time, Monday to Friday 9-5 employee, or a part-time employee who has set days of work.

In hospitality however, when working days and hours vary for many employees from week to week, concluding whether a day would otherwise be a working day is not always so straightforward. If this is the case, the employer and employee must try to reach an agreement on the matter.

It is important to note that there is no minimum period of time an employee has to be employed to become entitled to a public holiday and it does not matter whether the employee’s employment is classified as casual, fixedterm, full or part-time or permanent. The correct approach is to examine the true, practical nature of the employment relationship at the time.

To determine whether a day would otherwise have been a working day consider the following factors: •

the employee’s employment agreement;

•

the employee’s work patterns;

•

any other relevant factors, including – - whether the employee works for the employer only when work is available; - the employer’s rosters or other similar systems; - the reasonable expectations of the employer and the employee that the employee would work on the day concerned;

•

whether, but for the day being a public holiday, an alternative holiday, or a day on which the employee was on sick leave or bereavement leave, the employee would have worked on the day concerned.

All of the factors listed above must be considered when assessing whether a day would otherwise be a working day, however, it must also be stressed that these are not the only factors that can be taken into account – the

parties should consider any other relevant factors as well.

Here are some examples of the types of things that should be looked at.

Employment agreements If the employment agreement sets out particular days of work, this will obviously be very helpful in determining whether the day in question would otherwise have been a working day for the employee. However, an employer should also consider: •

whether the employee has agreed at the outset to the days or hours he or she is available to work (for example, if an employee has said that they are not available to work on Mondays, then it is unlikely that a Monday would be a day that the employee would otherwise have worked)

•

whether the agreement indicates that an employee’s days of work will be linked to the roster, and if does, whether this roster may vary and why it might vary

•

whether an employment agreement is structured around the employee not working on public holidays

Work patterns •

whether the business has any rules for determining whether there is a working pattern.

NEED HELP? Call us on 0800 737 827

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14

This might include a system that the employer uses (such as considering which days the employee has worked over the last 4 or 6 weeks of work) •

whether any regular patterns of work have developed, in terms of days and hours worked in each week (for example whether the employee has regularly worked the weekends but not Mondays or Tuesdays).

It is important to note that work patterns are particularly relevant where the rosters are not fixed, but don’t only rely on this as a method for determining whether a day is an otherwise working day!

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Rosters or other similar systems •

if the roster has fixed cycles, for example: 4 days on, 3 days off for 3 weeks, then 5 days on, 5 days off for 2 weeks and back to 4 days on, 3 days off for 3 weeks. If this is the case, it should be possible to figure out whether a particular day would (but for the public holiday) have been worked.

•

how far in advance the roster is issued and becomes fixed

•

if there is an expectation that the employee will work the days rostered, or whether there is some flexibility – for example, whether rosters are set by consultation, whether they can be reviewed, and whether employees can swap shifts.

But for the day being a public holiday, the employee would have worked on the day concerned This factor is a ‘catch-all’ provision – asking employees and employers to make an assessment of what would have been likely to happen if the day was not a public holiday.

Remember, that the employee and employer need to consider all of the relevant factors – merely looking at one or two will not suffice. Finally, if the employee would have worked any amount of time (even a short period) on the day concerned, then it is to be treated as a day that the employee would otherwise have worked.

The Restaurant Association has a guideline available for members on determining an "otherwise working day". Contact us on 0800 737 827, or email info@restaurantnz.co.nz if you would like to receive a free copy of the guide.

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REMEMBER, If you need urgent employment help, don’t forget we are available for advice and assistance on 0800 737 827 or outside general office hours on 027 413 3880.

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NEED HELP? Call us on 0800 737 827 THE THYMES NOVEMBER 2015

21

R E H OT

EMPLOYMENT MATTERS

EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS LEGISLATION

Employment agreements under the microscope The Employment Standards Legislation Bill is set to come into force on 1 April 2016. This omnibus Bill will amend a number of key pieces of employment legislation. The intention is to implement a single broad policy that aims to promote fairness and improve productivity in workplaces by enhancing protections and benefits for both employers and employees and prohibit practices that lack sufficient mutuality.

BY ALISON MAELZER, SPECIAL COUNSEL, HESKETH HENRY

C

ompliance with the new standards will be required immediately (i.e. from 1 April 2016) for all new employment agreements; however, a transition period of 12 months is permitted for any existing agreements. It is therefore prudent for employers to start thinking about how these changes might affect their business.

We have set out the most significant proposed changes below.

NO MORE “ZERO-HOUR CONTRACTS”

Availability provisions that require an employee to be available for work and to accept any work offered to them, without the reciprocal requirement that the employer actually provides work, will be prohibited, except where: • •

the employer has genuine reasons based on reasonable grounds for including an availability provision; and the employee is reasonably compensated for making him or herself available to work.

One such genuine reason might be the inability of the employer to meet business demands without resorting to an availability provision in employment agreements.

Where a genuine reason cannot be found for such a provision the employee can refuse to perform the work without any consequence.

Employers and employees also have the option of agreeing that a salaried employee’s remuneration includes compensation for making themselves available for work.

AGREED HOURS OF WORK

Agreed hours of work will have to be recorded in the employee’s employment agreement. “Hours of work” may include: any guaranteed hours, the days on which work is to be performed, start and finish times, and any flexibility in these arrangements. employment matters

CANCELLATION OF SHIFTS

Employment agreements will need to specify a reasonable period of notice that will be given by the employer to an employee before canceling a shift.

Agreements must also detail the amount of reasonable compensation payable if that notice period is not given. If these requirements are not met, the employee is entitled to be remunerated as if he or she had worked the shift.

SECONDARY EMPLOYMENT

Employers will need to state genuine reasons in employment agreements if the employer wants to restrict employees from entering into secondary employment.

Genuine reasons might include things like protecting the employer’s commercially sensitive information, intellectual property or commercial reputation.

ENFORCEMENT OF EMPLOYMENT STANDARDS

Employers will have to demonstrate that they are complying with minimum entitlement provisions by keeping detailed records of hours worked, including hours worked by salaried employees. This requirement can be met by having worker hours stated in the employment agreement, the wages and time record, or in a roster.

CONTINUED

DEDUCTIONS FROM WAGES

The Bill will amend the Wages Protection Act 1983 in order to prohibit employers from making ‘unreasonable’ deductions from employees’ wages. Though the Bill does not define what is unreasonable, the explanatory note suggests that deductions from an employee’s wage as a consequence of customer theft or the actions of any other third party will be considered unreasonable. The Bill will confirm, however, that a clause in the employment agreement is sufficient to constitute “written consent” to deductions, as required by the Wages Protection Act 1983.

EXTENSION TO AND INCREASED FLEXIBILITY IN PAID PARENTAL LEAVE SCHEME

The Bill will amend the Parental Leave and Employment Protection Act 1987 in a number of ways, including: •

• •

•

Eligibility will be expanded through new definitions.

The new definition of “primary carer” will extend existing parental leave entitlements beyond the natural parents to individuals who assume primary responsibility for the day-to-day care of a child under the age of six. The new definition of an “eligible employee” will also extend paid leave to individuals with non-standard working arrangements.

Primary carers of babies who are born prematurely may be entitled to additional paid parental leave.

The concept of “keeping-in-touch days” will be introduced, allowing an employee on paid parental leave to do up to 40 hours paid work without being treated as having returned to work.

Unpaid extended parental leave will be able to be taken (by mutual agreement between employee and employer) in more than one block.

It should also be noted that, separate from the Bill, paid parental leave will be extended in duration from 16 weeks to 18 weeks on 1 April 2016.

WHAT DO YOU NEED TO DO?

If you are employing someone after 1 April 2016, the employment agreement will need to comply with the new requirements. If you want: • An availability provision (i.e. to require employees to make themselves available for work); • Agreed hours of work; • The ability to cancel a shift; • To prohibit secondary employment; you may need to include new clauses in your employment agreement. Hesketh Henry have worked with the Association to update the employment agreement templates that are available to members, but you can also contact the helpline if you have any specific questions.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Alison Maelzer provides advice in all aspects of employment law (both contentious and non-contentious), with a particular interest in health and safety, disciplinary and performance issues.

CALL FOR HOLIDAYS

ACT REVIEW

R

ecently it was revealed that the Ministry of Business, Innovation and Employment (MBIE) has not been calculating staff holiday pay correctly, a miscalculation that may affect up to 3,000 employees and result in a combined payout of millions of dollars. It would appear this is not an isolated case, with NZ Police already paying out $30 million to staff to correct similar underpayments.

As a result the Restaurant Association is actively supporting a call for a review of the Holidays Act. Put simply the method to calculate annual leave is too complex and does not work with many employment situations, to a point where some payroll systems don’t even calculate correctly. In our industry employees rarely work on the same days and hours every week. The Act is reasonably straight forward if your employees work Monday-Friday on a standard eight hour day. If not it can be a minefield of complicated and frustrating formulas.

There are two ways holiday pay can be calculated – on the basis of ordinary weekly pay at the beginning of the holiday or the average weekly earnings over the previous 12 months. The key point to note is that of these two calculations, the employee is entitled to whichever is greater.

The law is more complicated than it needs to be and there shouldn’t be so much potential for differences or miscalculation. We will be working with Business NZ and the New Zealand Payroll Association in a call for a change to this cumbersome part of the Holidays Act. We’ll keep members up to date with developments.

Zero Hour Contracts

We know that the Zero Hour Contracts provisions are of significant interest to members and getting the new legislation right is paramount. We will be emailing to all members a special update on the new legislation and how members can comply with the new rules. Our employment agreement templates have also been updated and are now available at no charge to members.

In the meantime, please contact the Restaurant Association help line on 0800 737 827 with any specific queries.

E: alison.maelzer@heskethhenry.co.nz T: + 64 9 375 7628 NEED HELP? Call us on 0800 737 827

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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MINIMUM WAGE Increase

ANZAC DAY TRADING

With the increase of the minimum wage as of 1 April, there is some confusion as to who employers are obliged to pay the minimum wage to; who can be paid the starting out wage and what it is; rates for school kids; and the "living wage".

There is usually uncertainty about the ANZAC day public holiday, in particular around when you are allowed to trade. To alleviate any confusion, we’d like to remind members of your obligations over this public holiday.

The adult minimum wage will go up by 50 cents to $15.25 an hour from 1 April 2016.

The starting-out and training hourly minimum wages rates will also increase from $11.80 to $12.20 per hour from 1 April 2016.

While ANZAC Day is “Monday-ised” now when it falls on a weekend, this year the public holiday already falls on Monday (25th April), so is observed on that day only. Therefore here are the typical scenarios you may encounter for the day:

1 2

Here is some more information about the three minimum wage rates: • The adult minimum wage applies to all employees aged 16 and over who are not starting-out workers or trainees, and all employees who are involved in supervising or training other employees.

• The starting-out wage applies to starting-out workers. Starting-out workers are: - 16- and 17-year-old employees who have not yet completed six months of continuous employment with their current employer.

- 18- and 19-year-old employees who have been paid a specified social security benefit for six months or more, and who have not yet completed six months continuous employment with any employer since they started being paid a benefit. Once they have completed six months continuous employment with a single employer, they will no longer be a starting-out worker, and must be paid at least the adult minimum wage rate.

- 16- to 19-year-old employees who are required by their employment agreement to undertake industry training for at least 40 credits a year in order to become qualified.

• The training minimum wage applies to employees aged 20 years or over who are doing recognised industry training involving at least 60 credits a year as part of their employment agreement, in order to become qualified.

No minimum wage is applicable to workers under 16 years of age.

The living wage (which has also just been revised to $19.80) is more of a “movement” – it is essentially a wage that is ‘high enough to maintain a normal standard of living’. You don’t have an obligation to pay the living wage.

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

• if an employee usually works on a Monday and you require them to work on 25th April, they will be paid time-and-a-half for the hours they work, plus they will receive one day in lieu.

• if an employee doesn’t normally work on these days, but you require them to on the public holiday, they get paid time-and-a-half of their usual hourly rate.

• if you decide to close, or you have a staff member taking the day off, your staff who normally work on Mondays will be entitled to a paid day off.

ANZAC Day is a restricted trading day for some businesses. Under the Shop Trading Hours Repeal Act 1990, there are 3 1⁄2 days when some businesses have trading restrictions. These are Christmas Day, Good Friday, Easter Sunday; and ANZAC Day, until 1.00 pm.

However, in general, foodservice businesses can trade as usual as the Act specifies that takeaways, bars, restaurants and cafes can trade when “you only sell food that is already cooked or prepared, and is ready to be eaten”.

With regards to the sale and supply of alcohol, there are some restrictions preventing bars and pubs to sell or supply alcohol before 1pm on ANZAC Day. However, for restaurants and cafes with liquor licences your regular trading should be unaffected. If your customers are “on the premises for the purposes of dining” you are free to provide them with a drink to accompany their meal. The general rule to be noted here is that alcohol that is purchased must be consumed while dining, or finished shortly after dining is completed (within an hour according to the Act). While there is no strict definition on what constitutes “dining”, it would generally be considered that this is a meal and not simply some snack food.

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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BUSINESS INSIGHTS...

For many businesses the financial end of year is upon us.

While this can be a busy and potentially stressful time of year, it is also a good time to reassess your business and make some changes to set yourself on the right path for the next financial year. In this section we identify five different areas of your business - finance, technology, customer service, business structure and that all important work / life balance.

ADVENTURES OF AN

ANCIENT FOODIE What a wonderful country we live in!

I

was born in the depths of the Depression (1933). Last week I enjoyed the annual “Bluffies” Day at Soul Bar – all the oysters you can eat and a glass of champagne. Oh, the changes we have seen!

When I was a boy Friday night fish and chips was a culinary treat and my parents could only have a drink with their meal when dining at a hotel.

Things really started to change in the 1950s. “Hi Diddle Griddle” opened in K Road (507-food from heaven) with Otto Groen Cooking “chicken in a basket”.

Bob Sell opened La Boheme (and then the Colony night club) and Otto won his 7-year battle to open NZ’s first licensed restaurant, The Gourmet, in 1962.

KFC opened in Royal Oak around the same time – finger licking good!

Today we have a vast choice of eating-out options, ranging from eat-it-and-beat-it to silver service, licensed and unlicensed, dozens of ethnicities, and catering for most dietary desires.

Hospitality is an $8 billion industry, a major employer, and a significant contributor to our economy and tourist receipts.

Growth continues with sales up almost 10% last year and new outlets opening regularly.

We have been selling cafes, restaurants, and fast food outlets for over 50 years and still tap dance to work. It is an exciting industry, we enjoy the research (!) and see new opportunities every day.

BY CLYTH MACLEOD

Own your own business...

We are the specialists....

selling cafes, restaurants and fast food outlets for 53 years

Lunchbar 5 Days Only

$7,000 weekly, industrial area. Price $240,000 + stock.

Coffee Franchise

Big Restaurant

Brand new seats over 100, great location.

Price $470,000.

Italian Restaurant

Authentic food, financials available, attached accom. $135,000 + stock.

Clyth MacLeod Ltd Business Sales

Sales $49,980 per week.

Coming on the market.

Bargain price.

Cafe Ponsonby

Days only. Recently refurbished. Huge potential. $250,000 + stock.

plus 100’s more!

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Daytime Cafe/Catering

Great location, long lease, commercial kitchen. $218,000 + stock.

... don’t forget to support the businesses that support you & the Restaurant Association STRATEGIC PARTNERS...

MEMBERSHIP BENEFITS

MEMBERSHIP

BENEFITS for Restaurant Association members

WESTPAC Access specialist banking solutions and lower credit card commission rates with Westpac.

NOVA ENERGY Exclusive Restaurant Association member energy offers. Contact the membership team at the Restaurant Association to find out how Nova Energy can benefit your business.

Nova Energy - The Multi Energy Experts - Electricity - Natural Gas - LPG - Solar

KEY PARTNERS...

OFFICEMAX Your one-stop shop for stationery, technology, furniture, cleaning and hygiene products - and more.

Member discounts of up to 50% off OfficeMax’s already low, everyday prices. Open an account or identify yourself as an association member in store or online and take advantage of these discounts.

CROMBIE LOCKWOOD INSURANCE BROKERS The best value insurance you can have is insurance that works at claim time. Crombie Lockwood provides specialist restaurant, café and hospitality insurance solutions that are proven in the toughest situations. To see examples talk to your nearest Crombie Lockwood office.

SPARK BUSINESS COMMUNICATIONS SOLUTIONS Restaurant Association members can make significant savings with a customised package of Spark products and services. Contact the Restaurant Association to arrange your 30-minute business tech check.

EFTPOS NEW ZEALAND Access the best range of payments solutions for your business and exclusive discounts off terminal rental. This offer applies to the full range of Verifone terminals for both standalone and interfaced solutions.

Take advantage of the new Association member bonus deals and save up to the value of $1438.

ASSOCIATE+ PARTNERS...

If you want to talk further about an eftpos solution to suit your business needs, call 0800 EFTPOS.

Being a member of the Restaurant Association gives you access to a to savings on these essential services and supplies... and more.

Find out more at www.restaurantnz.co.nz or call us on 0800 737 827.

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

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RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION EFTPOS NEW ZEALAND

A WINNING PARTNERSHIP EFTPOS New Zealand has partnered with the Restaurant Association of New Zealand to bring you the best range of payments solutions. As we’re the largest and most experienced eftpos provider in New Zealand, we are proud to provide an exclusive offer to Restaurant Association members of 20% OFF terminal rental.

EFTPOS New Zealand can offer Restaurant Association members future proofed technology that meets your specific hospitality industry requirements, offering features such as Reliability, Faster Transactions, Tap and Go, Mobile Payments, and POS integration with more than 40 vendors.

20% OFF

ntal *

nal re Ter mi

TALK TO US TODAY! If you want to talk more about an eftpos solution to suit your business needs, call 0800 EFTPOS and ask for the Restaurant Association Offer. * Terms and conditions apply. 20% off discount applies to new EFTPOS NZ customers only signing a 36 month contract. * Best Price Guarantee - If you find a cheaper advertised price or have a written quote for the same (or similar) terminal on an equivalent contract term, we guarantee to beat it when you sign-up with us.

OUR PROMISE TO YOU BEST PRICE, WIDEST CHOICE AND ROUND‑THE‑CLOCK SUPPORT That’s why we’re New Zealand’s first choice for everything eftpos. Our 24/7 technical support team and customer service teams are industry experts and are always ready to assist you.

WE RESPOND QUICKLY TO INDUSTRY AND CUSTOMER REQUIREMENTS Our large in-house development team gets new solutions to the market first. We offer a wide range of eftpos terminals and connectivity options.

OUR SOLUTIONS ARE DESIGNED TO KEEP OUR CUSTOMERS’ PAYMENTS FLOWING SMOOTHLY We are easy to do business with, providing quick and efficient set-up, and simple and convenient on-going management of your solution.

OUR PRODUCTS MEET THE LATEST SECURITY STANDARDS You’ll have no compliance worries. What’s more, we are committed to meeting future requirements in a hassle free manner.

EFTPOS New Zealand Limited is a Verifone Company

0800 EFTPOS

www.eftpos.co.nz

GETTING YOUR NEW

FOOD PLAN SORTED The long-awaited Food Act is now in effect! Now that it’s here, use this quick checklist to make sure you’re prepared and a step by step guide to implementing your food control plan...

1

Do you know what the new law is all about?

The new law aims to modernise food safety in New Zealand, and make it easy to show your food is safe. It’s all about risk. It regulates higher risk activities more strictly than lower risk activities, and helps you to focus on what’s most important for keeping food safe. A good place to start is the overview of the Food Act 2014: Finding your way through the new Food Act, available on the MPI website.

2

Do you understand what you need to do?

Under the new law, you'll need to use a written plan to manage food safety, called a food control plan. The steps you need to take to get a food control plan implemented are listed below.

3

Do you know when you need to make changes?

All new businesses now have to register under the Food Act 2014 before they get started, whereas businesses that existed before 1 March 2016 are moving over to the new rules at different times. Restaurants with an on licence must apply to register no later than 31 March 2017. Restaurants without a liquor licence have until 31 March 2018, and those who already have a food control plan, until 30 November 2018.

4

Get more information if you need it: Information about the new law can be found at www.mpi.govt.nz/foodact. Businesses that operate in one local council area, will need to register with their local council. Businesses who operate in more than one location across the country can register with MPI. In addition, with the new Act now being at the forefront of many peoples minds we’ve been asked to clarify the steps that business owners need to transition to the new Act. As we've explained above, for existing restaurants and cafes and other foodservice businesses that have a liquor licence, you have until March next year to move to the new Food Act, or, if you are a foodservice business without a liquor licence, you have until March 2018 to bring your food safety practices in line with the Food Act.

But what do I need to do?

By that date you will need to following a food control plan and have registered it with your local Council or MPI. The food control plan is a plan for managing food safety. You can either use the food control plan template that has been developed by MPI for our sector, which is what the majority of foodservice businesses seem to be doing, or develop a custom built plan.

If you do decide to use the MPI food control plan template there are two main sections – 'Basics' and ‘Specialist'.

The Basics Pack For restaurant & cafe businesses you’ll need to complete the ‘basics pack’. You can download this from www.mpi. govt.nz (key word search ‘Basics Pack’). You’ll also need to start keeping a diary which you can also download from MPI. (If you have a retail component to your business you’ll also need to complete ‘retail basics’.)

These are the sections of the Basics Pack:

1 2 3

Introduction: Information about how to turn the template into your own, and use it in your business.

Management: Use this section to fill in your business details, keep records, and provide information about your location, equipment, and staff training.

Places Basics: This covers the basic procedures that all businesses must have in place to keep food safe at their premises, such as cleaning and maintaining equipment.

People Basics: This covers what you will do when staff are unwell, and how you monitor staff sickness, hand cleaning, and personal hygiene.

Food Basics: This includes your procedures to keep food safe, such as cooking temperature, chilling and frozen food storage, and food labelling.

Records Basics: Use this sub-section to record the things you need to check on a daily or weekly basis.

You will record things like the temperature your food is cooked to or stored at, and anything that changes or goes wrong.

4 5 6

NEED HELP? Call us on 0800 737 827

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

24

The Specialist Section In addition to the Basics template you’ll also need to download the relevant ‘specialist section’. Specialist sections are designed to help you manage the particular risks associated with your type of business. For example, restaurants and cafes will have different risks to manage than butchers or bakers. Download this from www.mpi.govt.nz, keyword search ‘serve safe template’.

Downloaded the plans, now what?

Once you have downloaded your plan, you must actually start following it! The MPI template makes this as easy as possible to do, as it provides guidelines, information for you and your staff, but also includes template forms for you to adopt and utilise in your business (so you don’t need to create these from scratch yourself).

We’ve had feedback from members that the plan is lengthy. We suggest you approach it section by section in the first instance and bear in mind you’ll not need to read it from start to finish each week once you’ve got things started! We’ve also had feedback from some members that they’d prefer something a bit more advanced technologically. The template is in a pdf format, however it is an editable pdf, so you should be able to use directly on tablets. We understand more technology is on the way.

Members who are already using the food control plan tell us that it formalised many things that they were already doing. Having said that, it will probably take you some time to make your way through the plan, implement

and get staff used to using the new templates, so we recommend that you give yourself some time. As many regions move into quieter months, it is a good time to start implementing the new systems so you’ll be all sorted well in advanced of the March 2017 deadline.

Using it, how do you register it?

If you are using the MPI template, you will register your plan with your local Council. Contact them for details and a registration form. Any custom food control plans are registered with MPI and there are some extra steps for you to go through, so give us a call if this is the case or check out the MPI website.

Once you have registered your plan with the Council, a verifier – such as an environmental health officer from the Council – will visit to check your plan. Don’t panic that you’ll get a knock on your door straight away; for existing business, your verifier must visit within a year of registering. The verifier will check that your food control plan is working for your business, you are following it effectively, and keeping all the records you need. They will give feedback on areas that need improvement.

After that initial verification, how often you are subsequently checked will depend on how successfully you are managing food safety. This could be as little as once every 18 months if you are managing food safety well. It will be more often if there are some issues. You must pay for each visit, so the better your food safety systems, the less it will cost you.

INTERNATIONAL CREDENTIALS FOR SOMMELIERS

An exciting opportunity for the wine and hospitality sectors of New Zealand has once again become available to all wine and service professionals.

The Court of Master Sommeliers is returning to New Zealand to offer its highly prestigious certification programme. The first two levels of the four level programme will again be available to career minded individuals who have a passion for people, service, wine and beverages.

The Court of Master Sommeliers is an internationally recognised examining body. Career minded individuals who want or require the correct credential for their chosen profession can engage in this programme to enhance their career, employment prospects and validate their role in the hospitality sector. Sommeliers can and do make a significant difference to the bottom line in any on or off-premise business.

When and where: Introductory Course and exams June 4th – 6th: Lakeside Room, Villa Maria, Mangere, Auckland. $850.00 programme and exam fee*. Limited to 30 participants.

Certified Sommelier Exams June 6th: Lakeside Room, Villa Maria, Mangere, Auckland $500.00 Exam fee.

Limited to 20 Participants.

ENQUIRIES to: Cameron J. Douglas - Master Sommelier: Email: cameron@guildsomm.com.

For more information about the Court of Master Sommeliers please visit: www.courtofmastersommeliers.org. or www.mastersommeliers.org​ *Members or new members to the Sommelier and Wine Professionals Association of New Zealand (SWPANZ) will be offered a discount to the Level One programme.

business insights

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

25

HEALTH & SAFETY WHAT SHOULD YOU DO NEXT? Over the past year we've had extensive updates on the Health & Safety At Work Act and how it will impact your business as the new legislation comes into force on 4 April. If you are still wondering what you need to do to get your business compliant with the new legislation, we offer some guidance: a copy of the Restaurant Association's 1toRequest guideline "Health & Safety At Work - what you need know".

This provides an overview of the new Act and considerations for business owners. This guideline is available free to Restaurant Association members.

Missed the Health & Safety Update webinar? You 2was can still order a copy of this recent session which held as part of the Restaurant Association's professional development calendar.

Presented by Hesketh Henry's Alison Maelzer, the webinar discusses how the new Health and Safety legislation will affect your business operations and compliance. Alison runs through the obligations for business owners under the Health and Safety At Work Act. A specialist in this area, Alison breaks down and explains the implications of the Act for hospitality business owners. She explains what the changes will mean for you and focuses on what you can do to ensure your business is ready.

Order your copy for $25+gst by emailing bookings@restaurantnz.co.nz.

Still need to implement a health and safety workplace 3manual policy? The Restaurant Association's Health & Safety can help you.

The manual provides guidance and information to help you to focus on health & safety in your business.

BUSINESS SUPPORT for Restaurant Association members

When wrestling with a problem, have you ever wished you could seek the advice of an industry expert who's ‘been there, done that’?

That’s where the Restaurant Association can assist you.

Offering expert advice and guidance is one of the many ways the Restaurant Association supports our members.

With year’s of experience Tony Adcock is currently working with us to provide mentoring and business guidance for Restaurant Association members.

If you haven’t used the Helpline (0800 737 827) before please feel free to call up for a business check-up. www.restaurantnz.co.nz

The Health & Safety manual also provides you with templates and forms you'll need to implement your workplace policy, so getting up to speed is as easy as possible.

Order your copy for $57+gst by emailing info@restaurantnz.co.nz.

4Call us!

We are here to answer any of your specific queries or concerns, so give the Help line a call if you need guidance on 0800 737 827.

MENTOR ME!

AVAILABLE TO HELP WITH EVERYTHING BUSINESS! • • • • • • • •

Food Costing Business Start up Lease Agreements General Hospitality business advice Business Check-up – Tony will talk you through his check list to ensure that your business is running effectively and efficiently Selling your business Sales and Marketing Budgeting advice THE THYMES MARCH 2016

26

HEALTH & SAFETY AT WORK

CAN INSURANCE HELP PROTECT YOUR BUSINESS?

The Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 has been passed by Parliament and will come into effect on 4th April 2016 replacing the Health & Safety in Employment Act 1992. Much has been written about the new regulations over the past few months but our focus here is on how the changes might impact on Restaurant Association of New Zealand members and specifically their insurance.

BY MARK JONES, HEAD OF PROFESSIONS, CROMBIE LOCKWOOD

H

ospitality is booming especially at a time of rapid growth for the tourism industry. It is an important sector for the New Zealand economy and is essential to our country’s long-term success as a destination for overseas visitors. Therefore, taking better care of the people who work in the hospitality trade isn’t just the “right” thing to do it makes good business sense.

Whether it’s in cafés, restaurants, takeaway outlets, bars, taverns, clubs and hotels or food trucks accidents can easily happen in a fast-paced environment where workers must deal with physically challenging work (often in confined high risk spaces) within tight time frames over long shifts.

The most common injuries in the hospitality industry are cuts and burns, closely followed by manual handling and slips, trips and falls. It’s with these and other dangers in mind that the regulations have been strengthened, with the aim of the more pro-active approach to reducing harm.

However, non-compliance can now result in significantly higher damages. Under the modified penalty structure an individual can be faced with fines up to $600,000 with terms of up to five years in jail. While that is at the extreme end of the spectrum the Act also creates a broader enforcement tool belt granting authorities increased powers to enter workplaces and ensure compliance and a continued ability to issue improvement notices, prohibition notices, new non-disturbance notices and suspension notices.

Insurance The good news is generally, Management or Statutory Liability insurance policies will respond to a breach of almost all Acts of Parliament with a few specific exclusions.

Due to the constant change in legislation and amendments to existing Acts, or the introduction of new Acts they are automatically included within the existing Management Liability and Statutory Liability insurance cover. Therefore there should be no requirement to make any amendments to a Management or Statutory Liability insurance policy to ensure that after 4th April 2016 it will business insights

respond to claims brought for breaches of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015.

The actual fines for the breach of the Act remain uninsurable as they have been for some years. However, insurance cover is available for the defence costs associated with a prosecution under the Act and also for any reparations that are awarded. The recently introduced Sentencing Amendment Act 2014 opens the door for the courts to order much higher awards of reparations. Even though the fines themselves cannot be recovered from insurance the legal costs of defending an action may well increase given that the new Act introduces much wider duties that have yet to be tested in court and because significantly more time and expense will be required to examine the validity of claims.

To manage those risks, directors and management need to re-examine their procedures, their safety hazards and staff training.

It is also strongly recommended that in light of the upcoming changes that you review adequacy of cover under Management or Statutory Liability insurance policies to ensure that a sufficient limit of indemnity is available for the increased exposure.

A thorough check of legal risks and associated insurance options might be a worthwhile exercise even for the busiest hospitality owner.

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

27

FOR SOME RESTAURANTS

a 3 per cent solution Yvonne’s supper club in downtown Boston, USA, calls it a “kitchen appreciation charge.” Centre Street Cafe says it’s a “hospitality fee.” But no matter what they call it, it will add another 3 percent to customers’ tabs. Restaurant owners in the United States, facing labour shortages and concerns about the plight of low-wage workers, are adding surcharges to customer bills to boost the pay of kitchen workers.

BY MEGAN WOOLHOUSE, source www.bostonglobe.com

I

t’s a risky strategy in a competitive industry fearful of alienating customers, but it also may be the way of the future.

Restaurants from Los Angeles to New York to Boston are adding surcharges and experimenting with other ways to increase wages for so-called back-of-the-house workers and reduce the inequality of a two-tier wage system that allows waiters and waitresses to earn far more than their behind-the-scenes counterparts.

In New York, restaurateur Danny Meyer, owner of the Gramercy Tavern and Union Square Cafe, has eliminated tipping at some of his restaurants in favor of folding the total cost of dining into one check, much as is done in Europe. The goal is to raise hourly pay for all workers and keep kitchen workers from leaving for better-paying jobs.

Restaurant owners in Boston point out that the hospitality fees are not in lieu of tipping but are a way of addressing the same issue — holding onto workers.

Cooking staff shortages have grown severe enough that some restaurant owners offer to pay $1,000 a month toward a chef’s culinary school loans. Others help employees find affordable housing.

Chris Jamison, managing partner of Yvonne’s, which opened last year, said he unveiled a 3 percent “kitchen appreciation charge” in September because he wanted to reduce employee turnover and bridge the wage gap among servers, bartenders, and bussers, who earn tips, and kitchen workers paid only by the hour.

Kitchen workers receive more than $11-an-hour minimum wage, he said, but their take-home pay is nowhere close to what a server can pull down in tips.

“It probably would have been easier to raise menu prices 3 to 5 percent and pay employees more,” he said. “But I wanted to make it clear this is a priority for us.”

Jamison said he got the idea last year in Los Angeles. He spent time with friends at their Los Angeles restaurant, Bestia, which added the 3 percent surcharge and didn’t see a drop in customers.

Yvonne’s pools the surcharges collected at the end of each night and divides the money evenly into the paychecks of kitchen workers, from chef to dishwashers. business insights

At Tres Gatos and Centre Street Cafe, a 3 percent hospitality fee took effect Dec. 1. On a recent weeknight at Tres Gatos, the fee added $3.69 to Jason St. Pierre and Maya McNamara’s check. St. Pierre, a product manager for Twitter in Boston, said he wasn’t fazed by it, although it might lead him to tip a server slightly less.

“I’ve worked in kitchens before,” he said, “and I feel like these folks work hard.”

At Centre Street Cafe, which, like Tres Gatos, is owned

by Keith Harmon, Maricely Perez-Alers, and David Doyle, the owners explain to guests their rationale for the fee in a page-long open letter on the menu.

“We’re tired of feeling like our kitchen staff are secondclass citizens,” the owners wrote. “We’re tired of knowing that they would be financially better off busing tables or working at a chain restaurant.”

Doyle said kitchen workers would make about 15 percent more under the surcharge plan, which pools the fee and distributes it monthly among employees based on the number of hours each has worked.

Complaints have been very few, he said, and he and his partners will soon open a third restaurant on Centre Street, called Casa Verde, that will include surcharges.

Doyle, who lives with his family above Tres Gatos, said he sees firsthand that kitchen staff are the first to arrive at the restaurant and the last to leave on most shifts.

And he said he’s hoping kitchen staff will stay longer; the restaurant has had three head chefs in the last five years.

“There’s this idea that restaurants are sitting on huge piles of cash,” Doyle said. “But we’re putting our life savings into this.”

Bryan Barton, a dishwasher at Centre Street Cafe, said he moved among half a dozen dishwasher jobs on the West Coast in recent years before landing at Centre Street Cafe two weeks before the new fee was announced.

The 27-year-old said the fee will add thousands to his take home pay annually and help him afford an apartment in a city where rents have soared. “It was the best feeling I’ve had in Boston,” Barton said. “It made me feel really hopeful, because I’m just getting my feet under me.”

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

28

EVENTS

PROGRAMME

WHAT’S ON 25

Good Friday (public holiday)

MARCH

02

28

MARCH - MAY

29

Easter Monday (public holiday)

Southland Anniversary Day (regional public holiday)

04

31

Scallop season ends

08

The Great Kiwi Beer Festival, Hagley Park, Christchurch

Restaurant Association Road Show - Wellington, Emerging Managers, presented by Krishna Botica

-10 The Food Show, Horncastle Arena, Christchurch

www.greatkiwibeerfestival.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

www.thefoodshow.co.nz

-17 Orange Food Week, NSW, Australia

-13 Vinitaly, Verona, Italy

Restaurant Association Road Show - Wellington Menu Engineering and Costing, presented by Stephen Thompson

Restaurant Association professional development Developing A Sales Focused Team, presented by Margaret Main

Restaurant Association Hawke's Bay branch MeetMe

www.orangefoodweek.com.au

www.vinitaly.com/EN

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

End of first Term schools

Restaurant Association professional development Train the Trainer, presented by

Timothy Giles & Tony Adcock

Restaurant Association Bay of Plenty branch MeetMe

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

APRIL

08

10

12

-15 Food and Hotel Asia 2016, Singapore www.foodnhotelasia.com

25

02

27

ANZAC Day (public holiday)

Bidvest Food Show, Auckland

02

www.bidvest.co.nz

03

11

15

11

18

12 19 01

MAY

-31 Aussie Wine Month

08

www.aussiewinemonth.com.au

20

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

09

Start of second Term - schools

Bidvest Food Show Hamilton 03 - Rotorua 04 - Tauranga

Restaurant Association Taranaki branch MeetMe

10

www.bidvest.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

Bidvest Food Show Hawke's Bay 11 - Wellington

Restaurant Association Auckland branch MeetMe

Bidvest Food Show Queenstown 18 - Invercargill 19 - Dunedin

-22 The Food Show, Westpac Arena, Wellington

Bluff Oyster Festival, Bluff

www.bidvest.co.nz

www.restaurantnz.co.nz

www.bidvest.co.nz

www.thefoodshow.co.nz

www.bluffoysterfest.co.nz

16

events ~ international and national

17

Restaurant Association Road Show - Rotorua, Emerging Managers, presented by Krishna Botica

22

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

30

O T T E S S ' BARISTA FIGHT IT OUT!

The Restaurant Association is welcoming the return of our national event - the high energy, intense competition of the 'Barista Smackdown', sponsored by Mojo Coffee, Meadow Fresh and Vitasoy.

This fast-paced tournament style event will put top barista's head to head in knock out heats, over three days of action at the Fine Food New Zealand trade show in June.

A

dapted from a successful international format, the New Zealand Barista Smackdown is tournament style, with single elimination rounds. Two names are selected at random, with the selected barista's facing each other in a one on one knock out heat. This is a "lay the smackdown on your opponent, win or go home, pour off"! Whoever out-pours the other will be showered down upon with praise, while the loser’s latte will be discarded mercilessly.

Too harsh? Too intense? Hey, this is the smackdown.

Sponsored by Mojo Coffee, Meadow Fresh and Vitasoy, the winning barista will receive $1000 cash and their registered cafe will also receive an equipment pack valued up to $1000. Spot prizes will also be up for grabs.

The event will be held at Fine Food New Zealand, ASB Showgrounds from Sunday 26 - Tuesday 28 June 2016.

Registrations are now open so encourage your barista's to go online to www.restaurantnz.co.nz to enter today.

WNED TA CAN BE CRO IS R A B Y K C LU ONLY ONE CHAMPION! SMACKDOWN

SPONSORED BY

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT MARCH & APRIL 2016

BOOK NOW!

e: bookings@restaurantnz.co.nz p: 0800 737 827 Monday 11 April, 10.00am – 1.00pm

Monday 18 April, 10.00am – 12.00pm

Margaret Main - Turning Tables

Timothy Giles - Trainer / Facilitator & Tony Adcock - Hospitality Mentor

What motivation and incentives do your team need to encourage them to sell more? Helpful tips and tricks will encourage your staff to enhance their customer service and sales skills and increase the business bottom line.

Training within hospitality business is important to overall success.

Providing ongoing training and development affects your business’ ability to remain competitive. Delivering effective training means you’ll be playing an important role in increasing the productivity and enthusiasm of employees and colleagues.

Developing A Sales-Focused Team

Join Margaret Main for a three hour workshop on developing sales culture within your team. Understand the principles of marketing and how your staff can best utilise these on the floor and learn about the systems that will ensure that they are consistently striving to increase profit.

VENUE: taste, 45 Normanby Road, Mt Eden, Auckland PRICE: $40 + gst - Restaurant Association members

Train The Trainer

Our presenters give tips and techniques for effective training solutions and insight to drive up the effectiveness of your training sessions. It is comprehensive and practical, including identifying training needs and the evaluation of training.

VENUE: taste, 45 Normanby Road, Mt Eden, Auckland PRICE: $40 + gst - Restaurant Association members

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

28

BAY OF PLENTY BRANCH PRESIDENT: Andrew Targett

AUCKLAND BRANCH

UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ Health & Safety / Food Act Update 19 April

PRESIDENT: Krishna Botica

UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ ER Update 16 May

WAIKATO BRANCH PRESIDENT: Adrian Hodgson

HAWKES BAY BRANCH

ROTORUA BRANCH

PRESIDENT: Sean Burns

PRESIDENT: Sharon Wallace

UPCOMING EVENT Professional Development Road Show 09 May

UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ Health & Safety / Food Act Update 12 April

TARANAKI BRANCH PRESIDENT: Barbara Olsen-Henderson UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ Health & Safety / Food Act Update 03 May

MANAWATU BRANCH PRESIDENT: Sean Kereama

REGIONAL UPDATES NELSON BRANCH PRESIDENT: Harry Morris

UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ ER Update 23 May

WELLINGTON BRANCH NATIONAL PRESIDENT: Mike Egan NATIONAL VICE PRESIDENT: Steve Logan UPCOMING EVENT Professional Development Road Show 04 & 11 April

CANTERBURY BRANCH PRESIDENT: Sam Crofskey

UPCOMING EVENT Branch MeetMe ~ Health & Safety / Food Act Update 30 May

DUNEDIN BRANCH PRESIDENT: Olive Tabor VICE-PRESIDENT: Helen Wright

SOUTHERN LAKES BRANCH PRESIDENT: Grant Hattaway VICE-PRESIDENT: Cam Mitchell

WELCOME

We would like to welcome the following new members of the restaurant association who have recently joined us.

congratulations...

You have joined the only organisation that exclusively assists you to safeguard the viability of your café, restaurant, or hospitality business. We will help guide you through the regulatory minefield that exists in today’s business environment.

You have joined 1850 of New Zealand’s most dynamic and profitable hospitality businesses.

& LIQUOR BEDFORD SODA

PATIO ROSE HAYES CO MMON

RAVEN & COOK

Bedford Soda & Liquor, Auckland

LDS Catering, Auckland

Bollywood Masala, Hamilton

Lone Star Head Office, Auckland

Brew Moon Brewing Company, Christchurch

Mahuhu Espresso, Auckland

Cheng's Chinese Restaurant, Timaru

Mekong Cafe, Wellington

Columbus Coffee, Timaru

OCGGI Sushi, Wanganui

Cooking Should be Fun, Auckland

Pasture, Auckland

Cooking Should be Fun, Wellington

Patio Rose, Tauranga

Cove, Stanmore Bay

Pisa Moorings Cafe Bar & Restaurant, Cromwell

Cuzzie Bro Burgers, Rotorua

Raven and Cook Café, Auckland

Flat White Cafe, Waihi Beach

Stan's Eatery & Bar, Whangaparaoa

Hayes Common, Hamilton

T Sushi, Rolleston

Hello Vietnam, Christchurch

The Coffee Club Silverdale, Auckland

Intenza NZ Ltd, Auckland

The Coffee Club Spitfire Square, Christchurch

new members

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

34

TALES FROM

taranaki

J

ust a brief report from me this month as we’re about to head to the United States and Mexico for a month and I seem to have quite a lot to do preparing for that! I have a daughter who lives in New York, and Alan’s son Nick is playing ice hockey for the Ice Blacks in Mexico City.

I have to confess I’ve never left my business for more than about 10 days max at a time, in the 20 years we’ve been operating, and then I've always been in at least the same country so staff could ring me if they needed to.

I’m feeling a little pressure…!

Further to my last report, the Port Authority, who is my landlord, has gone ahead with a car park charging trial of the large car park that most of my customers use. The trial initially banned cars from most of the car park, fining anyone $40 if they parked there unaware of the changes, and introducing hourly fees of $1/hour payable 24/7 (also attracting a $40 fine if you didn’t get it right).

After a lot of meetings and emails, they have ‘given back’ a shared area for cars to use alongside boat trailers, so now my customers have somewhere to

POLPETTA

CATCH & CO

park, but by now they’re so confused and disheartened by the unfortunate management of it all, that they’ve largely stopped coming, which has savaged my turnover. Instead of being nearly 14% ahead of last year (which we were up till December), we are now running 8% behind. I’m gutted! I’m writing to anyone and everyone whom I think might be able to influence the Port but it’s not looking good. The trial ends in April and I’m hoping for sanity to prevail and for them to take up my suggestions of a fully shared car park (as it was before) and if payment must be continued with, then pay on the way out so no-one risks a fine and everyone knows where they stand. Time will tell.

But enough whinging about that... the weather has been fantastic – hot and fine for weeks on end. This is most unusual in Taranaki, and whilst it’s hard to sleep at nights – it’s wonderful in the daytimes and most are enjoying the opportunities to eat al fresco for a change.

There have been a few new openings and closings, and two newbies that spring to mind are Polpetta and Catch & Co. Polpetta has taken over the premises that housed El Condor for many years until their recent closure and is a ‘meatballs and wine’ venue. Whilst I’d like to give you first hand confirmation of their fabulousness, I can’t – I’ve had to rely on what other people are saying. They say its wonderful with lots of options – even vegan and vegetarian ones. The night we went they were full and pumping and for us there was no hope of dining without a reservation.

Everyone looked very happy, it smelled great and the French waiter was charming. Busy on a Tuesday night bodes well for the future. We’re looking forward to going another night.

regional update

Catch & Co have opened up in what was the old Ocean Pearl takeaway premises down at the Port, adding to the variety of premises down there.

They seem to be an upmarket seafood takeaway business, with a few outdoor tables as well. This warm weather will be serving them well.

Whilst the weather has been great for everyone, our dairy farmers are really feeling the pinch. The payout has plummeted and this has decimated their income. And it’s the same story for the oil and gas industry, with numerous closures and laying off of staff in those businesses which support both of these industries. It’s pretty hard here for a lot of people at the moment.

I’ve heard of at least two well established restaurant premises that are for sale, but as I’m not sure how official it is I won’t name them. There will always be someone out there with fresh ideas and hope.

The region has also just hosted WOMAD. We always look forward to hosting this event and providing wonderful dining experiences to the thousands of people who flock to our beautiful province. And then it’s Easter – so still opportunities to offer hospitality to visitors and locals before winter sets in.

I hope it’s going well for the rest of NZ and we’re looking forward to a well earned break seeing what’s happening in the States. I’ll report on our return.

BARBARA OLSEN-HENDERSON

Taranaki Branch President Bach on Breakwater barbara_olsen@xtra.co.nz THE THYMES MARCH2016

35

BRIEF from

wellington musings from

manawatu

T

he New Zealand Agri Investment Week was held in the Manawatu from the 14th - 19th March. The Week included a series of national events aimed to provoke thought and discussion around the future of agri and bought a number of people into the region.

To add a bit of vibrancy to the week, a programme of support events was also established. This included Plate of Origin, a new competition where top local restaurants teamed up with some of the best chefs from around the country to produce the very finest of New Zealand’s food and wine.

PIERRE MEYER

The competition cumulated in a Best Cultural Dish, which was judged by celebrity judge Ray McVinnie of Master Chef New Zealand fame and local celebrity food blogger Lauren Bramley.

Festival-goers could also take part by voting for the People’s Choice dish on the day.

Me (left) with Cuisine editor, Kelli Brett

The Plate of Origin competition was based around 10 restaurants in Manawatu/Palmerston North, teaming up with 10 regional restaurants

adly, one of Wellington’s food pioneers, Pierre Meyer, passed away recently at the age of 87.

Pierre Meyer was awarded the Restaurant Association’s prestigious Hall of Fame Award in 1998.

This award is bestowed upon an individual for their contribution to the hospitality industry.

Pierre revolutionised our dining scene in New Zealand. Back in the 1970’s Pierre turned a local dairy at 342 Tinakori Road, Wellington into a restaurant that became the place to be for politicians, political reporters, and Wellington's elite. Pierre’s was Wellington’s first small and intimate restaurant. According to urban legend, not long after opening a group of MP’s were eating and (illegally) drinking in the restaurant's front window. The police apparently busted the place and as the story goes the next day in Parliament a law was passed to allow bring-yourown alcohol to restaurants.

Pierre was honoured as a Hall of Fame recipient for “openly defying what he thought were crazy liquor laws and for his innovative style of French Cuisine, introducing New Zealanders to a style of eating beyond the traditional meat and three veg”.

Personally I’m very proud of the restaurants, chefs and the dishes they have put up for the competition.

These local chefs stack up with the main players in bigger cities. Go the Manawatu!

A huge variety of ethnic cuisine was featured including Mexican, French, Spanish, Chinese, Japanese, Thai, Indian, Pacific, Sri Lankan, Italian, Vietnamese and classic favourites from USA and New Zealand. Participants had to have a focus on authentic cultural food, with a mixture of styles from traditional dishes through to Paleo natural ingredient-based menus.

S

Pierre will be fondly remembered in our industry as a pioneer who made a huge contribution to the hospitality industry.

SEAN KEREAMA

Manawatu Branch President Wharerata Function Centre

The Restaurant Association of New Zealand and members mourn the passing of a great hero and pioneer of the industry and passes on our sincere condolences to his family.

s.kereama@massey.ac.nz regional update

THE THYMES MARCH 2016

36

Don't miss our professional development road show coming to Queenstown on 13 June Emerging Managers, presented

by Krishna Botica

nelson news

NEWS from deep south

southern lakes

T

he Southern Lakes region has had an extremely busy summer with record tourist numbers coming through.

International visitors grew 9 per cent last year, driven by a 34 per cent increase in Chinese tourists!

As a result everyone has reported buoyant trade especially through the Chinese New Year period, with business stronger than the last summer season.

Destination Queenstown has done a stellar job in promoting the area to tourists in the shoulder season, virtually connecting winter trade to summer

THE PROPOSED QUEENSTOWN 'POD' HOTEL

There is a shortage of accommodation, which is why JUCY have recently announced they are building a new five story, 256 bed "pod" hotel on Camp Street in Queenstown's CBD. It's aimed at the budget traveller, with prices for a "pod" starting at $45, but will also cater for families with some private rooms with ensuites.

Pod rooms have eight pods each. Pods are similar to bunk beds but in two metre long and one and a half metre high capsules. Tourists will be able to check in, open and secure their rooms using a smartphone app. Each pod will have a tablet where guests will be able to wirelessly manage their room, travel itinerary and purchase entertainment on demand.

Regional Challenges:

One of the biggest issues for Queenstown in particular is the increasing rent for residential properties. There is a real shortage in the resort with many staff unable to find accommodation at all, which makes it tough for employers to retain key staff, let alone find new ones.

Queenstown’s growth has also caused traffic congestion at peak times, and shortly traffic lights will be introduced in the CBD to assist with the problem.

Upcoming Events:

Arrowtown Autumn Festival is coming up from the 21st - 25th of April this year - five days of festival events over the ANZAC weekend.

The first of the night flights commence from July in time for the ski season.

Season Ski passes have been slashed to $599 from $999 which should help create a very busy winter season.

GRANT HATTAWAY

Southern Lakes Branch President Pier 19 & Blue Kanu grant@hhgroup.co.nz

regional update

THE WAKA

F

igures from Nelson airport have put December and January tourist arrivals up 22% and once the March figures come through, it is expected that we are going to exceed this. With the two new carriers bringing tourists through it looks like the season should push out further than it has in the past. The feeling in town is that Summer has been good.

The Trafalgar Centre will be reopening soon, which will see the return of the Nelson Giants to town (back from Saxon Field where they have been for two seasons). This will bring a little more activity over the season.

Nelson Events, a company run by ex mayor Aldo Miccio and businessman Barry Galbraith, were the team behind getting the Warriors St George preseason game to town and with the Trafalgar Centre open again are looking at bringing more events to town.

Eddlyline is a new brewery/pizza bar that has opened in the Stoke/Richmond area. The owners started brewing in the United States and have now expanded to our fair shores.

Francis Monoploli from the Wakatu Hotel has opened The Waka at the old Hangar 58 site that went into liquidation in October. A great site that has space to provide a lot of different options.

HARRY MORRIS

Nelson Branch President Harry’s Bar dine@harrysnelson.co.nz THE THYMES MARCH 2016

37

CALL US ON 0800 737 827

WHAT DO THEY GET?

An introduction to: • • Hospitality • • Customer service • • Food safety training • • Barista training • • Food preparation • • Beverage service

WHAT WILL WE PROVIDE? Targeted services: A recruitment service Matched candidates Work ready graduates Ongoing support Frequent contact Mentoring

• • • • • •

Let us help you find the right staff!

Do you need work-ready staff who are keen to learn?

Do you struggle finding them?

A ProStart recruit could be for you!

The ProStart programme has introduced our students to the basics of hospitality.

They graduate with a great attitude, basic skills and a desire for a career in hospitality.

CALL US TODAY ON 0800 737 827 or email bookings@restaurantnz.co.nz

WHITE & WONG'S

mainly of interest to

AUCKLAND

SARDINE

There has been an influx of new openings all over town to mark the end of Summer / beginning of Autumn…

In the heart of the City, in Auckland’s Viaduct, the fabulous White & Wong's has opened. It is part of the Good Group Hospitality group of restaurants, which also includes Botswana Butchery (Auckland and Queenstown) and Harbourside and is headed by executive chef Stuart Rogan. The menu is an ‘east meets west’ a la carte menu designed to be shared. It combines the culinary traditions and intense flavours of classic street food from China, Hong Kong, Vietnam, Malaysia and Thailand – noodles, soups, curries and delicious dumplings. The restaurant also includes two private dining rooms and three private spaces.

But why open just one business when you can open three! Good Group have also just opened in the same vicinity by the water Sardine, a premium cocktail bar and Burger Boy, a gourmet burger bar.

MADAM GEORGE

On Karangahape Road, Madam George has been opened by Matthew Fitzgerald, who recently sold Ponsonby cafe Fred’s. Madam George is a bar / eatery offering elegant cocktails and a small, interesting food menu divided into smaller bites, larger meals and dessert. They will also host regular pop-up dining events with The Cult Project.

Also on Karangahape Road, new café Bestie has opened in Saint Kevins Arcade, at the location of the former Alleluya Bar & Cafe. Bestie owners are former Coco’s Cantina employee Emma Lyell and Metro illustrator Tane Williams, with head chef Nicole Standage offering a small menu and coffee from eighthirty.

THE GOVERNOR

Taking a step further out, Herne Bay, Grey Lynn and Epsom have also had a small flurry of openings…

Hot on the heels of the announcement that that iconic Jervois Road restaurant Vinnies was to close, came the news that former owner Geoff Scott has a new venture planned and that chef Nick Honeyman is to open a new eatery on the Vinnies site. More news next issue…

Nearby, and also on Jervois Road, The Governor has opened on the spot that used to house Zus and Zo. Open from morning till late, the menu is fresh, organic and locally sourced, with catering also available and a private dining room for up to 20 people.

Jess’ Underground Kitchen is a deli further down Jervois Rd, in the building that was previously the Rabbithole Cafe. For the past three years owner Jess Daniells has been running an underground operation, cooking takeaway home dinners three days a week. The business’ success lead to the publication of cookbook My Underground Kitchen, and an average of over 100-orders a night. Jess’ Underground Kitchen now offers cabinet food and stocks of local specialty produce, while the home-cooked dinners can now be ordered directly in-store, seven days a week.

JESS' UNDERGROUND KITCHEN

auckland members

POCKET BAR & KITCHEN

mainly of interest to

AUCKLAND

LITTLE JIMMY

Located in Ponsonby’s Lot 3 Laneways, Pintu salad bar has opened. At Pintu you can order from the menu or the selection of cabinet food, but the space is all about the salad bar, where you can either order a pre-designed salad from their menu or customise your own with a specialised menu where you choose everything from your leaf, protein and array of toppings.

In Grey Lynn, on the corner of Tuarangi Road, friends Alex MacFarlane and Rod and Alice Ballenden have opened Pocket Bar & Kitchen.

Predominantly a bar, the space’s key feature is a large glass vaulted ceiling to capture the sun. The food menu offers grazing fare, while the bar menu has as it’s specialty “house cocktails”.

On Manukau Road’s Greenwoods Corner, Little Jimmy Bar & Eatery has opened next door to, and by the same owners of, One Tree Grill. The restaurant has a more casual feel than it's next door neighbour and has a focus on food made using local producers and artisan suppliers. They are open day and night and have been getting some rave reviews.

HELLO FRIENDS + ALLIES

Also Epsom located, Hello Friends + Allies has transformed the former Video Ezy store into a café which has been opened by Fran Mazza and Aaron Carson, who formerly owned Henderson’s popular Little Sister café. The cafe is a salute to the ANZACs; half Italian, half Australian, Fran’s father lived in the Italian town of Rimini, where the ANZACs fought in World War II. Everything is made on-site using fresh, free-range and organic ingredients, with an extensive cabinet selection available as well as an a la carte menu. There are large communal tables, with a back space soon to be transformed to offer High Tea events.

Spacca is a small Italian eatery on Remuera Road specialising in Neapolitan cuisine. This is the first venture for owner Gino Buonacore, who has also employed the expertise of ex O’Sarracino owner and chef Gaetano Spinosa.

As the space only seats a maximum of 18 people at a time, they hold two dinner sittings, at 6pm and 8pm.

SPACCA

Heading North, No.6 (referring to their Takapuna address on Hurstmere Road) is the product of Alice Au-Yeung and her business partner, Daniel Ren, with the expertise of ex-Pyrénées and Olaf’s master baker Thomas Tureau. No.6 have a selection of artisan bread baked fresh everyday alongside a series of pastries and patisserie items but also have a menu selection, which will change fortnightly, you can sit down and enjoy.

Meanwhile Birkenhead has a new Southeast Asian eatery, called Mulan.

Head Chef James Balaksharian (previously at Takapuna’s Madam Woo) has created a menu derived from the flavours of his homeland, Malaysia.

COVE

And further North, Cove Eatery is a new all day eatery in Stanmore Bay owned by Dan and Ange Housley from Black Pepper Hospitality. Offering modern bistro style dining, Cove is open from 8am daily and has a breakfast and all day menu as well as cabinet food during the day, plus it is open for dinner five nights a week . auckland members

mainly of interest to

AUCKLAND

“Golf is so popular simply because it is the best game in the world at which to be bad...” A.A. Milne

THE RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION GOLF DAY WAS SUPPORTED BY

A

nother successful Auckland Branch Golf Day was held at Muriwai this year, with 36 teams registered and all holes sponsored, thanks to our wonderful event sponsors.

Congratulations to all our business card prize winners and particularly our golf game prize winners.

The winning team was: Wildfire

Commercial Kitchens.

Watch this space!

See you in February next year for our 2017 event. If you would like to register your interest early please contact Vanessa: vanessaw@restaurantnz.co.nz.

CHECK OUT PHOTOS FROM THE DAY OVER THE PAGE

SICK AND TIRED OF YOUR STAFF BEING, WELL, SICK AND TIRED? I am a qualified personal trainer with 15 years experience in the hospitality industry. Exercise boosts energy, improves mood and is fun.

Happy staff = happy customers = happy you Contact me on 027 431 5920 or hello@emmagtotalhealth.co.nz for information on services I can provide for you and your teams.

SUPPORTING SPONSORS

ARCHIBALD & SHORTER | PITA PIT | RED BULL

auckland branch annual golf day @ muriwai golf course 23 february, 2016

FOSTERING EXCELLENCE IN AUCKLAND HOSPITALITY

NOMINATIONS

Nominations open 30th March - Be quick! Nominations close 24th April

VOTING

Final voting begins 10th May - Voting for award recipients closes 29th May

AWARDS EVENING & AFTER-PARTY

SUNDAY 5TH JUNE ‘ONE NIGHT IN VEGAS’

The Great Room, Langham Hotel 5:30pm - 12 midnight

FOR INFORMATION ON VOTING AND HOW TO BUY TICKETS GO TO:

www.lewishamawards.co.nz PURCHASE YOUR TICKETS EARLY!

Early Bird Ticket: $75.00 (limited tickets available) .......... On sale 30th March - 8th May Full Price Ticket: $90.00 ................................................................... On sale from 9th May ENQUIRIES: vanessaw@restaurantnz.co.nz

Lewisham Foundation

lewishamawards

The Restaurant Association was formed in 1975 with the aim of serving and representing owners and manger of foodservice operations. It represents 1,850 members throughout New Zealand who employ 13,000 full and part-time employees. This is an industry that has an annual turnover of more than $8 billion, that employs over 100,000 workers, that is each week visited by more than a million hospitality customers. This makes it a cornerstone of New Zealand’s economy.

STARLINE... for whatever you’re washing

CHIEF EXECUTIVE: Marisa Bidois NATIONAL PRESIDENT: Mike Egan (Monsoon Poon, Auckland & Wellington; Boulcott St Bistro, Osteria Del Toro, Burger Liquor, Wellington) VICE PRESIDENTS: Bart Littlejohn (Sails Restaurant, Auckland) Steve Logan (Logan Brown, Grill Meats Beer, Wellington) BRANCH PRESIDENTS: Auckland: Krishna Botica (Café Hanoi, XuXu, Saan, Auckland) Bay of Plenty: Andrew Targett (Elizabeth Café & Larder, Tauranga) Canterbury: Sam Crofskey (C1Espresso, Christchurch) Dunedin: Olive Tabor (Nova, Dunedin) Hawkes Bay: Sean Burns (Milk and Honey, Napier) Manawatu/Wanganui: Sean Kereama (Wharerata Function Centre, Palmerston North) Marlborough: Watch this space!

Nelson: Howard Morris (Harry’s Bar, Nelson) Rotorua: Sharon Wallace (Waiariki Institute of Technology, Rotorua) Southern Lakes: Grant Hattaway (Pier 19; Captains Table Restaurant, Blue Kanu, Queenstown) Taranaki: Barbara Olsen-Henderson (Bach on Breakwater, New Plymouth) Waikato: Adrian Hodgson (The District, Hamilton) Wellington: Michael Egan (Monsoon Poon, Auckland and Wellington; Boulcott St Bistro, Osteria Del Toro, Burger Liquor, Wellington) RESTAURANT ASSOCIATION OF NEW ZEALAND KEY OBJECTIVES

1 2 3 4

Protect, promote and advance the interests and rights of its members

Promote industry quality, reputation and excellence

Provide relevant value added services to members

As an organisation achieve best practice stewardship within the business Association sector

info@washtech.co.nz 0800 STARLINE www.starline.co.nz