Registering as a union
Things you should know before you register
Under the Employment Relations Act 2000 (ERA), any group of employees can set up and register as a union. To do this, the group must first be an incorporated society registered under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 (ISA) — and then register as a union under the ERA.
To be eligible to register as a union the ERA states your organisation must be independent of employers.
Your organisation must also have:
- a minimum of 10 members, and
- a constitution that complies with the Incorporated Societies Act and the Employment Relations Act.
Before applying to register as a new incorporated society and register as a union, please ensure that you:
- Understand the requirements of the ISA, and have read the information on our Incorporated Societies Register website about starting an incorporated society.
- Understand the union registration provisions in the ERA, and have read the information on this website about what the Act requires.
- Read the information on this website about how to create a constitution.