New Zealand Post has revealed it may have underpaid up to 22,000 staff since 2010, and is setting aside $38 million to repay any lost holiday pay.

“It’s too early to say who exactly may be impacted, but some scenarios that typically result in underpayments are those employees who earn regular overtime or have variable patterns of work,” NZ Post chief financial officer Michael Boersen said.

“We’ll be able to confirm with individuals who register, and start the back payments from July 2020.”

The announcement comes after the logistics provider was identified by the ministry of business, innovation and employment as an employer that needed to update how it calculates holiday pay.

Boerson said that the business has written to 17,000 former employees asking them to register their details, as NZ Post calculates how much it needs to return to workers.

Gerard Hehir, national secretary of Unite Union, said NZ Post had been through several changes over the last decade, and its possible many members could qualify for back payments.

Online shopping on the rise

NZ Post recently revealed domestic e-commerce players are gaining traction, with over 65 per cent of shoppers preferring to purchase directly from local sites as opposed to international players, in its 2019 New Zealand E-commerce Review.

“Domestic sales growth is outstripping international online sales growth,” said Bryan Dobson, chief marketing officer at NZ Post.

Additionally, the data showed that Kiwi shoppers are transacting online 10 per cent more often on average, compared to 2017.