Fixed Term Contracts For Seasonal Tourism Staff

Peak season in tourism can come at you quickly. One minute you're managing a steady roster, and the next you're hiring guides, front desk staff, drivers, housekeepers or cafe staff to get through school holidays, ski season, cruise ship arrivals or summer bookings.

Fixed term contracts can be a really useful way to cover that seasonal rush. But in New Zealand, you can't use a fixed term just because it feels convenient. Your contract needs to clearly record the genuine reason for the fixed term, when it will end and how your seasonal arrangements will work in practice.

The good news is that this doesn't have to be complicated. If you get the basics right before your staff start work, you'll be in a much better position to run your peak season smoothly and avoid problems at the end of the season.

Can You Use Fixed Term Contracts For Seasonal Tourism Staff?

Yes, you can use fixed term contracts for seasonal tourism staff if you have a genuine reason based on reasonable grounds.

Under the Employment Relations Act 2000, a fixed term employee is someone whose employment will end:

• On a specific date
• When a specific event happens
• At the end of a specific project or piece of work

For tourism businesses, seasonal demand can be a genuine reason. For example, you might need extra staff because:

• Your accommodation business is fully booked over summer
• Your adventure tourism business runs extra tours during ski season
• Your cafe needs more staff during cruise ship season
• Your holiday park needs extra reception and cleaning staff during school holidays
• Your tour company has a temporary contract for a festival or event period

What you can't do is use a fixed term employment agreement to avoid giving someone permanent employment rights. For example, if the role is really part of your ongoing year-round staffing needs, calling it fixed term won't make it lawful.

Think about the reason before you hire. If the work will genuinely end or reduce at the end of the season, a fixed term contract may suit. If the work is ongoing and only the hours vary, you may need to look at a permanent part-time or casual arrangement instead.

What Genuine Reason Should You Put In The Contract?

You should put the real commercial reason why the role is temporary, and that reason needs to be specific enough for the employee to understand.

The Employment Relations Act 2000 requires you to tell the employee:

• That their employment is for a fixed term
• The way their employment will end
• The reason for the fixed term

This should be in the written fixed term employment contract before the employee starts work. A vague statement like because the business requires flexibility usually won't be enough.

Better wording is specific to your business and the season. For example:

Your employment is for a fixed term because the business requires additional tour guides during the 2026 winter ski season, when booking volumes increase. Your employment will end on 30 September 2026 unless it ends earlier under this agreement.

Or:

Your employment is for a fixed term because the business has been engaged to provide visitor services for the Milford Summer Festival from 1 December 2026 to 31 January 2027. Your employment will end when the festival engagement ends, currently expected to be 31 January 2027.

Say you run a kayak tour business in Queenstown and you hire Maya from November to March because your summer bookings triple. Your fixed term reason could point to the seasonal increase in customer bookings during that summer operating period. If you simply write temporary staff member, you may struggle later to show there was a lawful fixed term reason.

If the reason changes, don't just keep extending the same agreement without thinking it through. Repeated rollovers can start to look like an ongoing role, even if each contract has an end date.

How Should The End Date Or End Event Work?

Your fixed term contract should clearly say when employment will end, either by date, event or completion of a project.

For seasonal tourism roles, a specific end date is often the cleanest option. For example:

• Employment starts on 1 December 2026 and ends on 28 February 2027
• Employment starts on 15 June 2026 and ends on 30 September 2026
• Employment starts on 20 December 2026 and ends on 10 February 2027

If the season depends on an event, you can use an end event, but it needs to be clear. For example:

• The end of a particular festival
• The final day of a contracted tour programme
• The completion of a temporary visitor services project

Be careful with wording like until no longer required. That can be too uncertain and may not give enough clarity about when the employment ends.

Should You Include Notice?

Yes, you should include a notice clause, even where the contract has a fixed end date.

New Zealand employment law doesn't set one standard notice period for every role. Your employment agreement should set the notice period that applies if either side ends the employment early.

For seasonal tourism staff, you might choose a shorter notice period for shorter engagements, and a longer period for supervisory roles. The right answer depends on the role, seniority and how hard the person is to replace.

Your agreement should also say what happens if the season ends early. For example, if bad weather, a cancelled event or low bookings mean the work is no longer available, you need a contract that deals with early termination in a fair and workable way. You may also need to follow a proper process before ending employment early, depending on the wording and the circumstances.

What Should You Include About Rosters And Seasonal Hours?

You should include enough detail about rosters and hours so your staff know what to expect, while still giving your business workable flexibility.

Tourism rosters can be unpredictable. Bookings move, weather changes and customer numbers can spike at short notice. But the employment agreement still needs to be clear about the basics.

Your contract should cover:

• Whether the role is full-time, part-time, fixed hours, variable hours or casual
• The expected days and hours of work
• How rosters will be issued and changed
• Whether weekend, evening, public holiday or split shifts may be required
• Any minimum guaranteed hours, if applicable
• How breaks will be managed
• How overtime or additional hours will be approved and paid

If you include an availability clause, be careful. Under the Employment Relations Act 2000, availability provisions need to meet specific requirements, including having agreed hours of work and reasonable compensation if the employee has to be available beyond guaranteed hours. This is an area where generic templates often miss the mark.

For example, if you want a seasonal staff member to keep every weekend free in case bookings come in, you need to think carefully about whether you're requiring availability and what compensation is fair.

Public Holidays And Busy Periods

Public holidays are often peak trading days in tourism, so your employment contract and rostering process should deal with them clearly.

Under the Holidays Act 2003, if an employee works on a public holiday, they're generally entitled to be paid at least time and a half for the hours worked. If the public holiday would otherwise have been a working day for them, they're also generally entitled to an alternative holiday.

Whether a day is an otherwise working day can depend on the roster pattern, the employment agreement and what has actually happened in practice. Seasonal rosters can make this trickier, so it's worth being clear from the start.

Do Fixed Term Seasonal Staff Get Holiday Pay And Sick Leave?

Yes, fixed term seasonal staff still have employment rights, including holiday and leave entitlements.

A fixed term employee isn't a lesser type of employee. They're still covered by the Employment Relations Act 2000, the Holidays Act 2003, minimum employment standards and health and safety obligations.

For annual holidays, employees generally become entitled to 4 weeks of paid annual holidays after 12 months of continuous employment. For shorter fixed term or intermittent work, you may be able to use pay-as-you-go holiday pay at 8% of gross earnings, but only if the legal requirements are met.

For example, pay-as-you-go holiday pay may be used where:

• The employee is employed on a fixed term agreement for less than 12 months, or
• The employee's work is so intermittent or irregular that it's not practicable to provide 4 weeks of annual holidays

If you use 8% holiday pay, it needs to be agreed in the employment agreement and shown clearly and separately in the employee's pay. Don't simply roll it into an hourly rate without making it clear.

For sick leave, an employee is generally entitled to 10 days of paid sick leave each year after they meet the eligibility requirements, including 6 months of continuous employment with you or a qualifying pattern of work over 6 months.

Many seasonal tourism roles are shorter than 6 months, so sick leave may not arise for every worker. But if someone returns season after season, or their employment continues longer than expected, you should check their entitlements carefully.

Can You Use Contractors Instead Of Fixed Term Employees?

Sometimes, but only if the working relationship is genuinely contractor-based. You shouldn't call someone a contractor just to avoid employment obligations.

This matters in tourism because seasonal labour can be intense and short term. You might be tempted to engage guides, drivers, instructors or marketing support as contractors because the season is brief. That can work for genuinely independent businesses, but not for staff who are really working as part of your team.

The contractor gateway test came into law on 21 February 2026. It gives businesses and workers a clearer way to identify when a worker is a specified contractor rather than an employee. A worker is a specified contractor if all gateway criteria are met, including that:

• There's a written agreement that says the worker is an independent contractor and not an employee
• The worker is allowed to work for other businesses or clients, including during the arrangement
• The worker can choose when to work or can subcontract the work to someone else
• The worker can decline additional work without that ending the whole arrangement
• The worker had a reasonable opportunity to seek independent advice before signing the agreement

If the gateway test is met, that will be a key part of treating the person as a contractor. If the gateway test isn't met, the usual common law tests are still relevant, including how much control you have, whether the person is integrated into your business and whether they're really operating their own business.

So, in practice, you should look at both the written agreement and how the arrangement works day to day. Useful questions include:

• Do you control their hours, uniform, pricing, customer interactions and methods of work?
• Do they work only or mainly for your business during the season?
• Do they use your equipment, systems and branding?
• Are they presented to customers as your staff?
• Do they have a real ability to make a profit or loss?

Factors that may support a contractor arrangement include:

• They have their own business, insurance, tools or equipment
• They can work for other clients
• They control how the services are performed
• They invoice you for services
• They carry some commercial risk

If your tour guides work set shifts, wear your uniform, follow your scripts and use your booking system, a fixed term employment agreement may be safer than a contractor agreement. If an independent photographer provides occasional content for your tourism campaign using their own equipment and business, a contractor agreement may be appropriate.

What Records And Policies Should You Have Ready?

You should have a signed employment agreement before the employee starts, plus clear payroll, roster and workplace records.

For seasonal tourism businesses, good records aren't just admin. They help you manage fast-moving rosters, holiday pay, public holidays and end dates without confusion.

Before the season starts, get these employment documents and processes ready:

• A tailored fixed term employment agreement for each role
• A clear position description
• A roster process, including how changes are communicated
• Payroll setup that separates ordinary pay, holiday pay and allowances where needed
• Wage, time, holiday and leave records
• Health and safety induction documents
• Policies for uniforms, customer complaints, social media, alcohol or drug use where relevant
• Privacy notices if you collect staff information, photos, IDs or emergency contact details

You must keep wage, time, holiday and leave records for 6 years. You should also keep copies of employment agreements and any variations.

Tourism businesses often collect a lot of personal information quickly, especially during onboarding. Under the Privacy Act 2020, collect only what you need, tell staff why you're collecting it, store it securely and limit who can access it.

If you take staff photos for IDs, websites or social media, don't assume you can use them for marketing. Get clear written consent for how the image will be used, especially if the content will stay online after the season ends.

Common Mistakes To Avoid

The biggest mistake is treating a fixed term contract as a casual shortcut. It needs to match the real arrangement and the legal requirements.

Watch out for these common issues:

• No genuine reason: If the role is ongoing, a fixed term contract may not be appropriate.
• Vague end wording: Phrases like until the busy period ends can create uncertainty.
• Missing holiday pay wording: If you're using 8% pay-as-you-go holiday pay, it needs to be agreed and shown separately.
• Roster promises you can't keep: Don't guarantee hours unless you're prepared to provide them.
• Availability clauses that go too far: Requiring staff to be available without the right structure can cause problems.
• Rolling over contracts without review: Repeated fixed terms may weaken the argument that the role is genuinely temporary.
• Forgetting returning staff: Someone who comes back each season may have different expectations and entitlements that need careful handling.
• Starting work before signing: Get the agreement signed before the first shift, not halfway through the season.

Also be careful with trial periods. A 90-day trial period can only be used if the legal requirements are met, including that the employee is new to your business and the clause is in the written agreement before they start work. If you're re-hiring someone who worked for you last season, a trial period may not be available.

A probation period may be an option in some cases, but it doesn't remove your obligations to act fairly and follow a proper process. The wording matters.

Key Takeaways

• Fixed term contracts can work well for seasonal tourism staff where you have a genuine, specific reason based on reasonable grounds.
• Your agreement should clearly state the reason for the fixed term and exactly how the employment will end.
• Rosters, hours, public holidays, availability and early end scenarios should be dealt with before the season gets busy.
• Fixed term staff still have employment rights, including holiday pay, minimum standards and safe working conditions.
• Contractor arrangements need careful thought, including whether the contractor gateway test is met and what the day-to-day arrangement looks like.
• Good records, signed agreements and clear policies make peak season much easier to manage.

If you'd like help with your fixed term employment contracts, seasonal rostering clauses, holiday pay wording or contractor arrangements, you can reach us at 0800 002 184 or team@sprintlaw.co.nz for a free, no-obligations chat.