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The Coalition has managed to form a majority government in a fiercely contested election last Saturday. While Labor had spent much of its election campaign outlining a near-overhaul to the industrial relations landscape, the Morrison Government’s IR platform was more aligned with the status quo. Here is everything we know about the LNP’s plans to change the Fair Work Act. Casual employment The right for casual employees to convert to full-time or part-time employment has existed under most modern awards since October last year. The Fair Work Amendment (Right to Request Casual Conversion) Bill 2019 would have seen a similar entitlement under the…
Read MoreIn something of a speed record for the Australian judicial system, less than three weeks after final submissions were made the Federal Court of Australia yesterday ruled that Qantas workers who have been stood down are not entitled to paid personal (sick) leave or compassionate leave. This case may have significant ramifications for employers nationwide as they struggle to cope with the interaction of leave entitlements and stand down during the COVID-19 pandemic. The issue at stake As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, in mid-March Qantas announced its intention to stand down about two-thirds of its workforce of…
Read MoreDue to the speed with which the COVID-19 pandemic spread and required social distancing to ‘flatten the curve’, many companies were forced to either stand down their workforces or organise and implement alternative working arrangements (including work from home arrangements) with little opportunity to reflect on the challenges associated with either course of action, including later returning the workforce to work. And it seems just as quickly, the success of efforts to ‘flatten the curve’ in Australia mean that some of us will soon be returning back to our workplaces. But it’s fair to say that the way we work…
Read MoreLate Friday evening, the Treasurer tabled the Coronavirus Economic Response Package (Payments and Benefits) Amendment Rules (No. 2) 2020 (the Amendments), which amends the rules of the Federal Government’s JobKeeper program. The Amendments give effect to changes announced by the Treasurer on Friday 24 April 2020, including important clarifications to the “one in, all in” aspect of the JobKeeper scheme and the eligibility of junior employees. Multiple other amendments have been made, however due to the interest in these particular topics as expressed over our Workplace Relations Hotline, we take this opportunity to explore these in more depth. One in, all in…
Read MoreAlthough reasonably new (and still changing), the JobKeeper program has, so far, had a mixed effect on businesses. Whilst some employers have embraced it wholeheartedly others, especially those with a workforce comprised largely of casual employees usually earning less than $1,500 a fortnight, have been more hesitant to undertake the significant cost increase to meet the requirements of the scheme. In the retail industry in particular, the NRA has been receiving reports of casual employees making themselves unavailable for work for unsupported reasons or indeed no reason at all, secure in the knowledge that they will be paid $1,500 a…
Read MoreMany of our readers will doubtless be aware, by virtue of the many, many circulars issued in recent weeks, of the temporary amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) which allow employers greater flexibility in the engagement of employees who are receiving JobKeeper payments. These measures include statutory authorization to direct employees to work fewer hours than their contracts, or their modern award or enterprise agreement, would otherwise require them to work, without any penalty to the employer provided certain requirements are met. Relatively little attention appears to have been brought to amendments made to 103 modern awards on the same day that…
Read MoreThe Fair Work Commission has set the benchmark for employers seeking to reduce the amount of redundancy pay payable to employees who were made redundant due to a downturn in business as a result of COVID-19. Earlier this month, the FWC heard an application from Mason Architectural Joinery Pty Ltd, a small joinery and cabinet making business in Melbourne, and three applications from Worthington Industries Pty Ltd, which commercially manufactures products for the building, furniture, caravan and rail industries. Both businesses sought to reduce the amount of redundancy pay payable to employees on the basis that COVID-19 had caused a downturn in business…
Read MoreThe unprecedented disruption caused by coronavirus (COVID-19) has left many employers considering their immediate options to reduce expenditure over the coming weeks and months. In most cases, substantial cost-savings may be able to be achieved by consulting with employees about reducing their hours of work by agreement or taking annual leave until the business is able to recover. However, should these avenues prove unsuccessful the only option available to employers to ensure the continuation of their business may be to make positions redundant. Where at least 15 employees are made redundant, employers are also required to notify Centrelink in writing…
Read MoreReceiving notice of any legal proceedings is enough to make the blood run cold of most business owners and HR professionals. For many, the process of defending such an application can be time consuming and emotionally taxing. While much work has been done to simplify and streamline Fair Work Commission processes, employers often find complying with these rules and procedural steps to be quite daunting. In some cases, this can lead to parties becoming disengaged from the proceedings, which only makes things worse for both themselves and the other party. The advice of experienced professionals can assist greatly in navigating…
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