Venkat Raman
Auckland, April 5, 2024
The country will turn the clocks back one hour to New Zealand Standard Time at 3 am when time turns to 2 am.
The Chatham Islands will turn its clocks back one hour to Chatham Standard Time at 3.45 am when it becomes 2.45 am.
People may find it convenient to put their clocks back by one hour before going to bed on Saturday, 6 April.
An Internal Affairs press release said that most New Zealanders should experience a seamless transition, with modern electronic devices adjusting automatically. However, older devices may need to be adjusted manually. While adjusting clocks and devices, it is a good time to check emergency plans, survival kits and smoke alarms.
“Daylight Saving runs from the last Sunday in September to the first Sunday in April. This year Daylight Saving will begin again on 29 September,” the press note said.
About Daylight Saving:
Many publications credit the Daylight Saving Time proposal to English builder and outdoorsman William Willett, who proposed DST in 1905.
However, modern Daylight Saving Time was first proposed in 1895 by New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, who valued daylight hours as he enjoyed collecting insects after work. In 1895, Hudson proposed the idea of changing clocks by two hours every spring to the Wellington Philosophical Society, which ridiculed his idea.
Background information
Daylight saving was introduced in 1927, however, the dates and times were changed several times over the following years.
During the mid-1940s, New Zealand Standard Time was advanced permanently by half an hour, and daylight saving time was effectively discontinued. This practice was followed until 1974 when an advance of one hour in summer was reintroduced.
Protest over change
Dairy farmers were up in arms over the idea of having to milk cows in the dark, and parents with young children worried about getting them to sleep while it was still light.
The small Northland town of Ararua, home to many dairy farmers, went so far as to ignore the new time when the rest of New Zealand switched to daylight saving time.
Majority approval
A Survey conducted in 2008 found that 82% of New Zealanders approved of the 2007 extension to the period of Daylight saving time.
The rationale for changing the time over the summer months is that more sunlight hours will fall in the early morning if standard time is applied year-round.
In Summer, these early morning sunlight hours are seen as being wasted as many people are asleep at that time. If the sunlight hours are shifted to the evening, by way of daylight saving time, they are more useful.
Employment Law
If you are working when Daylight Saving begins and the clocks go forward, you actually work an hour less, but you are entitled to payment for your normal hours. For example, if you were meant to work from midnight to 8 am you will only work seven hours, but you are entitled to be paid for 8 hours of work. If you are working when Daylight Saving ends and clocks go back an hour, you are entitled to any extra hours that you work. For example, if you were meant to be working from midnight to 8 am, you actually work nine hours and you are entitled to be paid for nine hours of work.
Further information on Daylight Saving time can be obtained as follows:
Governing legislation – Our time zone, the daylight saving dates and the rules around what happens if you are working when the clocks change are governed by 2 pieces of legislation.
History of daylight saving in NZ – New Zealand first introduced daylight saving time in 1927. The current times have been fixed since 2007.
Public attitudes to daylight saving – The 2008 survey found that 82% of New Zealanders approved of the 2007 extension to the period of daylight saving time.
See the New Zealand Government website for more information.
