No warnings, no training, and a probation period nobody read correctly
An Auckland employer fired a staff member via WhatsApp, got the probation period wrong, and paid nearly $16,000 for it.
In a determination issued on 26 February 2026, the Employment Relations Authority ruled that Super Vape Store Limited had both unjustifiably disadvantaged and unjustifiably dismissed retail assistant Gemma Pedersen, ordering the company to pay $15,917.48 in compensation and lost wages, with costs reserved.
Pedersen started with the company on 14 October 2024, though the Auckland store she was hired to work in did not open until 18 November 2024. Her employment agreement set a six-month probationary period. She was dismissed on 13 January 2025, three months into the job.
The company cited poor KPI performance as the main reason for the dismissal, pointing to low basket size, basket value, and customer sign-up rates. It also alleged that Pedersen had an unconstructive attitude, poor communication, and was inflexible with rostered shifts. The ERA found that none of these concerns had ever been formally raised with Pedersen. She had received no warning, no opportunity to respond, and no indication her job was on the line.
The termination was delivered by WhatsApp, then confirmed by email, with no fair process followed beforehand. The ERA found this did not meet the fair process requirements under the Employment Relations Act 2000.
There was also a more basic error. Miriam O'Hare, who managed the company's payroll function and acted as the employer's representative throughout the proceedings, believed the probationary period was three months long. The employment agreement said six. The ERA found the decision to terminate was partly due to that misunderstanding. Pedersen's probationary period, correctly calculated, ran until at least 14 April 2025.
Training was a separate but connected problem. Pedersen claimed the company had promised full training on its systems and legal processes but never followed through. The company pointed to sessions with an Australia-based area manager in October 2024, six training shifts through to December 2024, and WhatsApp-based video calls. Pedersen acknowledged the early sessions but noted the point-of-sale system had not been set up at the time, leaving her to figure it out largely on her own.
The ERA agreed. It found she had been left to learn the POS system on a "trial and error" basis, which knocked her confidence and affected her performance. A WhatsApp message from Ms O'Hare, sent on 21 November 2024, had already flagged the shortfall, promising staff: "When the products arrive, we will also send Lewis over for a grand opening and full sales training for a week with you both." That training never arrived before the dismissal.
The ERA awarded $2,000 for the disadvantage arising from the training failures and $11,000 for the unjustified dismissal. Pedersen was also awarded $2,917.48 in lost wages for the period from her dismissal to when she secured a new job on 14 February 2025. No reduction was made on account of any conduct by Pedersen.
What this case makes plain for anyone managing people: know what is in your own employment agreements, honour your training commitments before measuring performance against them, and follow a proper process before letting anyone go, no matter how small the business.
