The existence of a labor union in the workplace presupposes the unions’ and the employer’s right to initiate collective bargaining or the process of negotiation of working conditions between the parties with an intention to reach an agreement. As far as New Zealand’s employment is concerned, the process of collective bargaining starts with an official notice of bargaining initiation.
An initiation of bargaining notice stands for a legally justified document that explains the intention of a union or of an employer to initiate collective bargaining in order to discuss the specifics of their employment relationship. Such notice should also include the parties intended to participate in the bargaining and the type of work the parties are willing to cover during the procedure. Once the notice is received and processed by both parties, collective bargaining takes place with the mandatory participation of at least one employer and one union.
It is necessary to mention that prior to sending a bargaining notice, the union is obliged to inform all the potentially concerned employees about the clause coverage, or the desired outcomes of the bargaining, as union members are expected to speak on behalf of every employee. When an applicable collective agreement exists between the parties, the union members are entitled to initiate collective bargaining within sixty days of the agreement expiry, and the employers have forty days to initiate the bargaining. Hence, it may be concluded that the most significant procedure in terms of collective bargaining is the presentation of a legitimate and exhaustive initiation notice. Once this notice is accepted and clarified to both parties, the negotiation should take place in accordance with the presupposed mechanism.