Articles

A recent decision of the Fair Work Commission, Mr Peter Gourdeas v Heyday 5 Pty Ltd[1] has confirmed that an employer must consult with ‘affected employees’ as required by an enterprise agreement or award that is binding on the employees and employer. Under the Electrical,  Electronic and Communications Contracting Award 2020 (the Electrical Contracting Award) … Continued

From 20 November 2020, employers are now required to apply the compounding approach when calculating the pay of their casual employees who work overtime. This means that the employee is required to pay time and a half, double time and double time and a half on the rate that is inclusive of the casual loading. … Continued

The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act) states that a worker is bullied if an individual or group of individuals “repeatedly behaves unreasonably towards the worker or a group of workers of which the worker is a member” while the worker is at work and the “behaviour creates a risk to health and safety”. The … Continued

On 30 September, the Fair Work Commission extended the operation of Schedule I in the Clerks Private Sector Award until 30 November 2020. Schedule I contains various provisions aimed at preserving the business viability during the COVID-19 pandemic. For administrative employees covered by this Award, subject to meeting all of the requirements in Schedule I, … Continued

The Covid-19 pandemic has had drastic impacts on the Australian economy. The Australian Federal Government has implemented schemes such as JobKeeper in response to preserve the employer-employee relationship and keep businesses and employees in work. The second phase of the JobKeeper scheme begins from 28 September 2020. It allows legacy employers who were previously qualified … Continued

Several key amendments to the Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017 (Qld) (‘Act’) have been released by the Queensland Government that will impact on NECA members in QLD.  A number of changes will come into operation on 1 October 2020 concerning new offences that are now subject to penalties, supporting statements for payment … Continued

It’s coming up to that time again, where we wrap up the year, celebrate the successes of the past 12 months and enjoy in Christmas festivities. With the holiday season fast approaching it is also important for businesses to remember that this time of year can come with its own specific issues that need to … Continued

In accordance with the contract of employment and the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (‘Act’), employers have a legal right to terminate the employment of their employees. Where an employee believes they have been unfairly dismissed or terminated due to discrimination, or the employee exercising a workplace right, the employee may apply for an unfair … Continued

From the 28 September 2020, QBCC will be making changes to their accepted payments methods. They will no longer be accepting cash, cheque or money orders as payments. Payments will be made through credit card, BPay and any direct debit services. These payments will extend to payments accompanying an adjudication process. Why is this an … Continued

Under the new Criminal Code and Other Legislation (Wage Theft) Amendment Bill 2020 (Bill), which was passed by the Queensland Parliament on 9 September 2020, employers that engage in deliberate wage theft face jail terms of up to 10 years or 14 years when fraud is involved. The Bill was introduced to ensure that wage … Continued

The COVID-19 pandemic has had a drastic impact on the Australian economy. The Australian Federal Government has implemented schemes such as the JobKeeper wage subsidy in response to the pandemic in order to preserve the employer-employee relationship and keep businesses and employees in work. On the afternoon of 1 September 2020, the Coronavirus Economic Response … Continued

The High Court has granted an appeal by Mondelez Australia concerning the method of accruing and calculating paid personal/carer’s leave under section 96(1) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act). Section 96(1) of the Act provides that “For each year of service with his or her employer, an employee is entitled to 10 days of paid personal/carer’s … Continued