Overview of workforce related legislation, and roles and responsibilities related to layovers and driver facilities.
Providing adequate layover and driver facilities are an essential part of meeting legislative obligations.
The Employment Relations Amendment Act 2018 (‘the Act’) provides employees with the right to rest breaks and meal breaks throughout the workday.
Prior to the 2018 amendment, the Act required that employees receive reasonable and appropriate rest breaks and meal breaks without specifying the number, duration or position of the breaks within the workday.
The Act’s amendment provides greater clarity of rest break and meal break entitlements which benefits workplaces by helping employees to work safely and productively.
Bus drivers are entitled to paid rest breaks (10-minutes) and unpaid meal breaks (30-minutes) depending on the length of a shift. Breaks are generally for attending to personal matters and are a break from work-related tasks which could include eating, going to the toilet or taking a mental health break.
When an employee takes these breaks, they need to be able to reasonably attend to these personal matters. A safe environment should be provided in accordance with the requirements of the Health and Safety at Work Act 2015 which obligates protecting employees from workplace health and safety risks, so far as reasonably practicable.
Health and Safety at Work Act 2015(external link)
To enable bus operators to meet the obligations of the Employment Relations Amendment Act, public transport contracting authorities and road controlling authorities may need to establish new driver facilities at layover spaces for drivers to take their breaks. This is because many layover spaces do not currently have nearby driver facilities and therefore bus drivers are not able to reasonably attend to personal matters.
The Land Transport Rule: Work Time and Logbooks 2007 sets out the limits to work time for drivers of commercial vehicles including drivers.
Section 2.1(1) of this rule requires bus drivers to take a 30-minute rest break after a maximum of five and a half hours of continuous work time.
A break which is 30-minutes in duration may be classed as both a rest break under the Land Transport Rule and a meal break under the Employment Relations Amendment Act.
Land Transport Rule: Work Time and Logbooks 2007
Part 5 of the Land Transport Management Act (LTMA) sets out the regulatory framework for how public transport services are organised and delivered in New Zealand. The LTMA places a significant emphasis on the need for public transport authorities, territorial authorities, and public transport operators to work together in developing public transport services and infrastructure.
More specifically, section 115 of the LTMA identifies principles that stakeholders must be guided by when undertaking functions relevant to public transport. Among other things, the principles require functions to be undertaken in a way that:
Layovers and driver facilities are essential elements of public transport networks. These facilities form part of the working environment for personal and significantly impact the ability to attract and retain people within the public transport workforce. These facilities also play a crucial role in ensuring efficient and cost-effective operation of services. The LTMA requires a collaborative approach to planning and providing such facilities.
Land Transport Management Act 2003 No 118 (as at 01 January 2024)(external link)
Many organisations have statutory roles and functions relevant to organising and delivering public transport in New Zealand. Key roles and functions related to public transport, generally, are outlined in the Public Transport Framework.
Regulation of public transport
Roles and responsibilities more specifically relating to bus layovers and driver facilities are outlined in the below table.
Roles and responsibilities related to bus layover and driver facilities:
|
Organisation |
Key responsibilities |
|
Ministry of Transport |
administers transport related legislation such as the Land Transport Management Act. |
|
NZ Transport Agency Waka Kotahi (NZTA) |
responsible for investing funds from the National Land Transport Fund in public transport services and infrastructure licensing bus drivers and operators providing public transport infrastructure on state highway oversee the planning, operation, implementation, and delivery of public transport |
|
Public Transport Authorities (PTA)
|
public transport authorities are regional councils, unitary authorities and Auckland Transport, or any territorial authority to which the regional council has transferred relevant function and powers responsible for the planning, management and contracting of public transport services within the city or region may own and maintain public transport assets (bus shelters, off-street bus layovers and driver facilities) or these may be owned and maintained by the road controlling authority (dependent on arrangements) |
|
Road Controlling Authorities (RCA) |
own, maintain and develop the local road network used by public transport services responsible for providing bus stops, bus lanes, and other on-road infrastructure in coordination with PTA typically provide and own on-street layover spaces |
|
Bus operators |
contracted by PTA to deliver public transport services typically responsible for assets to deliver services such as vehicles, depots, and workforce facilities. responsible for employing people to deliver contracted services and for managing the employer / employee relations responsible for scheduling and allocation of bus driver shifts (eg deciding which trips are allocated to each driver). This influences when and where bus layovers and bus driver facilities are needed |
The exact roles and responsibilities for funding, ownership and maintenance of bus layover or driver facilities will depend on context. Arrangements can vary from place to place but should generally be organised in accordance with the following principles:
It is important that the PTA, RCA, and operators work closely to ensure integrated provision of facilities that enable efficient operation of service, good customer experience and support public transport workforce.
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