Exit Interview Form (New Zealand)

An Exit Interview Form in New Zealand sets out the duties, hours, pay, leave, and termination terms between employer and employee, consistent with the minimum entitlements guaranteed by the Employment Relations Act 2000.

In New Zealand, the exit interview process is governed by the overarching good faith framework of the Employment Relations Act 2000 (ERA) and the privacy obligations imposed by the Privacy Act 2020. Section 4 of the ERA imposes a statutory duty of good faith on all parties to an employment relationship, requiring them to be active and constructive in establishing and maintaining a productive employment relationship. While this duty technically applies to the ongoing employment relationship rather than the exit process specifically, the spirit of good faith — being responsive, communicative, and genuinely engaged with the other party's interests — is well reflected in a thoughtfully conducted exit interview process.

The Privacy Act 2020, which replaced the Privacy Act 1993, is the primary legislation governing how employers collect, hold, use, and disclose employee personal information. Exit interview responses constitute personal information for the purposes of the Act and must be handled in accordance with the 13 Information Privacy Principles (IPPs). This means employers must inform the departing employee of the purpose for which the information is being collected, must use it only for that purpose, must keep it secure, and must not retain it for longer than is necessary.

New Zealand exit interviews typically cover several distinct areas. Role satisfaction explores what the employee found rewarding and challenging about their role, the clarity of their responsibilities, and whether their actual duties matched the role they were recruited for. Management feedback assesses the quality of the employment relationship with the immediate manager, including communication, support, feedback, and adherence to the good faith obligations of the ERA. Workplace culture and environment feedback identifies systemic issues such as team dynamics, organisational values, inclusivity, and the physical or remote work environment. Remuneration and benefits feedback helps the employer assess whether pay levels, KiwiSaver employer contributions (which must be at least 3% of gross salary under the KiwiSaver Act 2006), annual leave entitlements (four weeks under the Holidays Act 2003), and other benefits are competitive. Career development feedback identifies whether the employer has provided sufficient training, mentoring, and advancement opportunities.

Conducting exit interviews serves important strategic and legal functions for New Zealand employers. Strategically, exit interviews provide unfiltered, honest feedback that current employees may be reluctant to provide. They reveal patterns of turnover — for example, if multiple employees in the same team or under the same manager are leaving for similar reasons, this is a clear signal for organisational intervention. Legally, exit interviews can help employers identify potential personal grievance issues early — for example, if a departing employee discloses concerns about harassment, discrimination, or unjustified disadvantage — and take prompt steps to investigate and address those concerns before a formal grievance is filed.

A formal Exit Interview Form should be used by every New Zealand employer each time an employee voluntarily resigns, reaches the end of a fixed-term agreement, or departs for reasons other than serious misconduct. The timing of the exit interview matters: it should be conducted during the notice period or on the employee's last working day, when the employee is still engaged with the organisation but has no incentive to withhold honest feedback.

For voluntary resignations, exit interviews are particularly valuable because the employer has the opportunity to understand the root cause of the departure before the employee leaves. If a high-performing employee is leaving for a competitor, the exit interview may reveal that the departure is driven by a specific, addressable issue — such as a salary that has fallen below market rate, a lack of promotion opportunity, or a specific management problem. In some cases, this insight may allow the employer to make a counter-offer or otherwise address the underlying concern. Even where the departure cannot be prevented, the feedback informs future retention strategies.

For fixed-term employees whose contracts are ending, exit interviews provide an opportunity to assess whether the employee would be interested in future roles, and to gather feedback about the fixed-term work experience. This is particularly valuable in industries such as education, health, construction, and the public sector, where fixed-term employment is common.

For employees who are made redundant under a genuine restructure, exit interviews may still be appropriate, but the employer should be mindful of the sensitivity of the situation. Redundancy is a specific category of dismissal under New Zealand employment law, and the employer must follow a genuine consultation process under the ERA before confirming redundancy decisions. An exit interview in a redundancy context should focus on the employee's overall employment experience rather than the restructure process itself.

Export interviews are also important from a personal grievance risk-management perspective. Under section 114 of the ERA, an employee must raise a personal grievance within 90 days of the date on which the grievance-giving action occurred. Exit interviews conducted during the notice period provide an early opportunity to identify any grievance-giving conduct — such as an allegation of bullying, discrimination, harassment, or unjustified disadvantage — and to take prompt action to investigate and address the matter. Employers who can demonstrate that they took a departing employee's concerns seriously and investigated them promptly are in a much stronger position if a personal grievance is subsequently filed.

Finally, exit interviews are needed when the employer wants to build a systematic body of data about the reasons for employee turnover. By using a consistent exit interview form across all departures, the employer can track patterns over time — for example, whether turnover is concentrated in particular departments, roles, regions, or under particular managers — and use this data to inform targeted retention and management development interventions.

A complete and effective New Zealand Exit Interview Form should include the following key elements.

Organisation and HR contact details identify the employer and the HR representative conducting the interview, and record the date of the interview. This provides context for the record and confirms the document can be properly filed on the employee's personnel file.

Departing employee details record the employee's full name, job title, department, region of employment, employment start date, and last working day. Recording the length of service provides context for interpreting the feedback — a long-serving employee's perspective differs from that of someone who has been with the organisation for a few months.

The primary reason for leaving is the most important data point in the exit interview. A standardised list of reasons (such as new employment opportunity, remuneration, relocation, management relationship, culture, career development, redundancy, retirement, or personal reasons) allows the employer to track and compare departure reasons over time and identify systemic issues.

Role satisfaction questions assess the employee's experience in their specific role, including what they found rewarding and challenging, whether their workload was manageable, and whether their actual duties matched the role they were recruited for. This feedback helps the employer improve the role design and onboarding process for future employees.

Management and culture feedback is the most sensitive section of the exit interview. It assesses the quality of the employee's relationship with their manager, the team environment, and the broader organisational culture. Employers must be prepared to act on critical feedback in this section — particularly if it reveals potential issues of bullying, harassment, or discrimination that could give rise to a personal grievance under section 103 of the ERA.

Remuneration and benefits feedback assesses whether the employee's pay and benefits were competitive and met their expectations. For New Zealand employers, this should specifically address KiwiSaver employer contributions (minimum 3% under the KiwiSaver Act 2006), annual leave entitlements (four weeks under section 16 of the Holidays Act 2003), sick leave (ten days under section 65 of the Holidays Act 2003), and any other benefits offered.

Career development feedback identifies whether the employer provided sufficient training, mentoring, and advancement opportunities. Lack of career development is consistently identified in New Zealand workforce research as a primary driver of voluntary turnover.

Overall recommendations invite the departing employee to provide their top suggestions for improving the organisation. This is often the most valuable section of the exit interview, as departing employees are willing to be direct in a way that current employees often are not.

The privacy notice informs the departing employee of how their feedback will be used and stored, in accordance with the Privacy Act 2020 Information Privacy Principles.

The employee acknowledgement records the employee's confirmation that the responses are accurate and their understanding that the form will be kept confidential. The forms-legal.com Exit Interview Form (New Zealand) provides a ready-to-use template that meets New Zealand legal requirements.