If you’re being treated badly at work, here are some things to think about before you leave.
- Your safety is always the top priority. If it is no longer safe for you to be at work, then you do not have to stay.
- You could let your manager know you’re sick and not well enough to come to work, or you could request annual leave, while you decide how to exit.
- You have to let your employer know about your concerns. Your employment agreement should tell you how to raise a complaint. Make sure this is in writing and send it to your employer by email or on a messaging platform if that is how you communicate with your employer. Take a screenshot of the message in case they delete your access to that chat.
- If you decide to leave, you usually have to let your employer know in advance. Your employment agreement may state how much notice you have to give them. You and your employer can agree on a shorter notice period, but if you don’t give the notice period required in your agreement, you could be in breach of your agreement. An employer can also pay you instead of requiring you to work out your notice period.
- If your work visa states that you can only work for that particular employer, then you can:
- Look for work with a different employer, and if they will ‘sponsor you’, you can ask if you can transfer your visa to them.
- If there have been breaches of your minimum employment rights, then you could make a complaint of exploitation to MBIE and apply for a Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa.
You should make the complaint to MBIE while you are still working for your employer if possible, so that you can still apply for the Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa.
- You should make the complaint to MBIE while you are still working for your employer if possible, so that you can still apply for the Migrant Exploitation Protection Visa.
- If your employer’s behaviour is so bad that you feel you have no choice but to resign, talk to us or a lawyer about next steps. This could include writing a letter to your employer, giving notice of your resignation, or raising a personal grievance saying that you had no choice to resign because of the employer’s conduct.
