Irrespective of what contract is being offered, unless any of its terms are unlawful, they will likely be binding (and possibly, binding in unanticipated ways if they are unclear). If you don’t understand the contract terms, then get legal advice. In this article, we...
Jenny Edinger
Snapshot of Impending Changes to the WA Long Service Leave Act
The amount of long service leave an employee can accrue has not changed and: after ten years of continuous employment with the same employer, eligible employees are entitled to 8.667 weeks leave (or payment in lieu); after the first ten years with the same employer,...
Dealing with Employees’ Requests For Leave During the Pandemic
COVID19 illness of an employee or of an employee’s dependent; employees having to quarantine or self-isolate; employees having to home school children; employees not being able to source care for children and elderly or disabled relatives due to a lack of service...
High Court puts the brakes on casuals double dipping
Workpac v Rossato This case concerned the employment of Mr Rossato by Workpac Pty Ltd (Workpac), a labour hire agency. Over several years, Mr Rossato was employed by Workpac as a ‘Casual Field Team Member’ to provide services to Glencore Australia Pty Ltd at several...
Mandatory Covid Vaccinations: Implications for Work Health and Safety
A failure to comply without a reasonable excuse is punishable by a fine of up to $20,000 for individuals, and $100,000 for bodies corporate. Following recent developments in New South Wales, aged care providers who contravene the Directions, may also be held liable...
The perils of insisting upon employees rendering exclusive service during the COVID-19 pandemic
On 30 March 2021, the Fair Work Commission (Commission) handed down the decision of Health Services Union v Huntingdon Nursing Home Pty Ltd [2021] FWC 1730 (Decision), which dealt with an attempt by New South Wales aged care provider, Huntingdon Nursing Home Pty Ltd...
Mandatory flu vaccinations in aged care facilities
Jennifer Kimber v Sapphire Coast Community Aged Care Ltd [2021] FWC 1818 In early 2020, the New South Wales Government issued a public health order (PHO) requiring any person entering the facility to have an up-to-date vaccination against the flu. In accordance with...
IR Omnibus Bill Update
On 22 March 2021, the much reduced Bill was passed through Parliament. Provisions relating to wage theft penalties, the length of greenfield agreements and enterprise agreement bargaining including controversial changes to the Better Off Overall Test were abandoned....
Ensuring that employees are correctly paid will be a key focus for regulators in 2021
The Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020 (the Bill) was introduced into Federal Parliament on 9 December 2020. Amongst other things, the Bill seeks to “enhance the Fair Work Act compliance and enforcement framework to more...
JobKeeper response to Victoria’s second wave
Government’s announcement on 7 August 2020 Further to our alert on 28 July 2020, the Federal Government announced on 7 August 2020 that they are easing eligibility requirements to the JobKeeper Scheme nationally in response to the introduction of Stage 4 restrictions...