Judicial Review
Comments
the court found the bill unconstitutional because of the publication requirement, not because employees are required to give a reason for leave.
The key constitutional issue seems to be:
- The bill requires employees to provide a general reason for their leave to the approving authority (which is likely permissible).
- But it also requires that the general reason be published on the employee's publicly accessible Employee Records profile.
- The court appears to have viewed that public disclosure as an unnecessary invasion of employee privacy or otherwise inconsistent with constitutional protections.
Finally, we argue Amendment 3 has become a
legislative orphan under page 10 of the Legislation Act 2025 because this amendment replaced the entire Leave of Absence part, meaning Amendment 3 no longer has operative effect