Education credentials are being developed as a way to help protect the public from rogue and untrained employment advocates.
Unlike lawyers, who are educated and regulated, employment advocates don’t require any training or qualification standards, and there is no compulsory means for unhappy clients to seek compensation for poor or unethical conduct.
As a result, there are several examples where people in employment disputes have felt their advocates were poor but had no means of holding them to account.
Several advocates say this reflects poorly upon them. And while their preference is for the sector to be regulated, they have begun to collaborate with Ringa Hora Services Workforce Development Council to create education credentials for advocates.
Among the groups pushing for change is the Employment Law Institute of New Zealand (ELINZ), a professional industry body representing employment advocates and employment lawyers. Its members are subject to a code of conduct, but membership is not compulsory.
“There have been times where our members who become the subject of a complaint just resign their membership, and we can’t do anything for the client after that,” ELINZ president Anthony Drake says.
While efforts to introduce regulation continue, Drake says the idea of creating an education credential for advocates is a very positive step to improve standards in the sector.
“The key plank for us has always been consumer protection, and a good way to ensure this is for advocates to have qualifications available for them to earn,” he says.
“This is a fantastic opportunity to help those in the industry to get the skills that they need to deliver for the consumer.”
ELINZ and other interested parties last year engaged with Ringa Hora, which is responsible for workplace credentials in the legal sector, with the idea of developing credentials.
They have held several discussions to get the process started. Ringa Hora has sought expressions of interest from advocates and other employment law professionals who want to take part in creating the credentials.
“This is a great example of how Ringa Hora works alongside industry to address a problem,” Ringa Hora chief executive Kari Scrimshaw says.
“We’re very pleased to be working with the industry on something like this that protects vulnerable people.”
Ringa Hora began developing the credentials with industry representatives in April and hopes to have draft credentials ready by the second half of the year.
