News

On 28 July 2022, the Albanese Government introduced the Fair Work Amendment (Paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave) Bill 2022 (Bill) into Parliament. Why? Because domestic violence is still causing far-reaching waves affecting the lives of millions of people. The issue – which by its definition happens at home – is intruding on workplaces. The most recent Personal Sa...

By Amanda Curatore Today, the Labor Government’s Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill (Bill) has passed Parliament. The Bill, which will become law upon being signed by the Governor General, is promoted by the Government to deliver Australian workers “a better deal and a better future.” The Bill introduces various amendments to the Fair Work Act (Cth) 2009 (FW Act) which are s...

Yesterday, the Government announced the passage of the Anti-Discrimination and Human Rights Legislation Amendment (Respect at Work) Act 2022 (‘the Bill’) into Parliament. The Bill amends the Commonwealth workplace anti-discrimination and sexual harassment framework to implement a further seven recommendations from the Sex Discrimination Commissioner’s Respect@Work: National ...

Failures to check the correct steps before terminating an employee have caused expensive legal bills and a mixed result for a Melbourne company, as well as serving as a reminder for the employer – while you may have a valid reason for dismissing an employee, caution must be taken so the dismissal isn’t found to be procedurally unfair. The reminder comes after the Fair Wor...

Yesterday, the Labor Government introduced legislation which is promoted to deliver more secure jobs, better pay and a fairer workplace relations system for Australian workers. This is the most significant proposed change to Australian industrial relations legislation for many years and will have direct implications for all workers and requires consideration on the part o...

Jane frequently calls in sick – averaging six days of sick leave a month. Each time she complies with the employer’s policy and provides a medical certificate. The medical certificate states Jane is “suffering from a medical condition” however provides no further detail. Jane’s absences are impacting the team as her work is reallocated to her team members, contributing to bu...

Did you know that mentally unhealthy workplaces cost Australia up to $39 billion each year in lost participation and productivity? The way our almost 13 million-strong labour force undertakes daily work has changed drastically in recent times. The sudden shift to remote working models put a significant focus on mental health at work. And while our physical health and safe...

Australia’s complex Work Health & Safety (WHS) laws can be overwhelming for any business to wrap their heads around, and in no industry is this more evident than in building and construction. In the construction game, highly complex systems of work and operations create unique and genuine hazards and risks to workers onsite every day.  For this reason, the threshold of wh...

Domestic violence is an ever-present and serious concern within Australian society. As individuals and parties become more empowered to speak up and gain support, it’s important we’re constantly assessing the way in which employers and our workplaces can play their part in supporting victims. In this article, we discuss what Family and Domestic Violence Leave (FDVL) is an...

The Fair Work Commission’s Minimum Wage Panel (FWC) handed down its decision on the annual wage review today. The decision provides an increase of 5.2 per cent to the National Minimum Wage, taking it to $21.28 per hour, effective from the first full pay period commencing on or after 1 July 2022. The increase to Modern Award minimum wages is $40 per week for classification...

Association for Talent Development Can businesses say with confidence that the decisions they make place people as their most valuable and important asset?  And can those same businesses say that they do everything they can to ensure their most important asset is kept healthy and safe? It’s definitely a balancing act.  A culture of safety at work is vital, and business...

1 WORK HARD!!! What a let-down... But the reality is that after all is said and done, if you want to be good at anything, you have to work hard. You also need some natural talent, a good attitude, emotional intelligence and to love what you do, but... you will never excel at anything unless you put in a lot of hard work. I have heard many people who have been successful i...

The Coalition Government has recently announced that it will seek to criminalise non-compliant and unethical employer conduct. This has arisen in the wake of the recent George Calombaris underpayment scandal and can be seen as an extension of the Government’s general policy position towards the protection of vulnerable workers and further strengthening the audit and complian...

What is a healthy workplace? A healthy workplace promotes a positive workplace culture, minimises workplace risks related to mental health, supports people with mental health conditions appropriately and prevents discrimination. It is about identifying what you can do to promote good working habits, support others and most importantly, look after your own health and wellb...

The Fair Work Commission’s Minimum Wage Panel (“Panel”) has today handed down its minimum wage decision which increased the National Minimum Wage, together with all Modern Award minimum rates of pay, by 3.0%. The Panel considered the current economic environment and reasoned that economic indicators now point to a healthy national economic environment, strong employment g...

1. Start at the top and continue in the middle Although employee engagement is a shared responsibility, positive engagement starts at the top. Senior management that are positively engaged can often have a ripple effect on an organisation. All senior staff and management have a responsibility to engage staff which goes beyond just delivering directions and managing work f...

Like most things in life, a systematic and structured approach to managing key responsibilities (albeit a little tedious at times) frees you up to focus on the stuff that keeps the blood pumping. Whether it’s the regular dental check-up, servicing the car or keeping records for your tax return, life’s that bit easier when you do the small stuff consistently. Unlike person...

In the workplace, most people in Australia would recognise HR as meaning Human Resources. Yet have you ever stopped to think about what this actually means? What is the actual purpose of a HR Department? While a Human Resources Manager or a HR Department may perform many different functions, the overall purpose is: to provide resources for the humans in the organisatio...