The Australian courts are now issuing far more significant fines in relation to dealing with safety prosecutions. The courts are “maturing”, and safety regulators have increased prosecutions of individuals around breaches involving mobile plant.
Recently, a company in WA terminated an employee’s employment after the employee accused a co-worker of sucking up to the boss, using sexually explicit language and making accompanying offensive hand gestures.
A recent Court decision around a probationary period has led to discussions on what is the best approach when dealing with a termination of employment in or near the end of a probation period.
Earlier this year sole trader Jason Stitt was found guilty of breaching the NSW Work Health and Safety Act 2011 by exposing workers to the risk of falling and dying while undertaking scaffolding work at a Point Piper residential property.
As part of the Fair Work ‘Closing Loopholes’ reform, the definition of a casual employee was updated.
A shutdown is when a business temporarily closes, most commonly around Christmas and New Year. Information about shutdowns can be found in Modern Awards and registered agreements.
A constructive dismissal occurs when a person has resigned from their employment but was forced to do so due to the actions of the employer. In other words, the employee felt they had no choice than to resign.
A worker was hospitalised with salmonella poisoning while employed as a casual kitchen hand at Central Cafe in Gungahlin in the ACT in February 2017.
Both Fair Work Australia and the Australian Taxation Office (ATO) have indicators to determine which workers are employees or contractors. Some of the indicators overlap and some are different.
Starting on or after the 5 July 2024, the Fair Work Commission made the following changes to the General Retail Industry Awards 2020.
A baby and children’s retail outlet in Victoria, Baby & Kids Pty Ltd, has been investigated by the Fair Work Ombudsman after receiving a request for assistance from a worker.
Big Bell Gold Operations Pty Ltd in WA was recently sentenced for failing to provide and maintain a safe working environment at its Bluebird gold processing plant in February 2020.
In the current financial year, Victorian businesses were faced with an unprecedented hike in their workers compensation policy premiums.
Penalty rates are higher pay rates that employees need to be paid for working particular hours or days and are dictated within Modern Awards. Employees may be entitled to a penalty rate when working.
As we have previously advised, on 1 July 2024 rates of pay were increased following the Fair Work Commission’s Annual Wage Review.
There was a recent prosecution in Victoria relating to a rubber supplier (The Elastomers Pty Ltd) who were fined $450,000 as a worker was killed in May 2021 when a blockage on the rubber production line was being attended to.
Employers have been urged to create proper onboarding programs for new managers, and give them the skills to manage up, with a large proportion of new middle managers being unprepared for their responsibilities and experiencing burnout.
In 2022, a Melbourne carpentry business hired Built Tech Hoardings to modify entrance gates at a work site.
The Fair Work Act gives all employees protected rights at work and these are known as ‘general protections’.
Fair Work has imposed rules on employers regarding employee pay slips. A breach of these rules can result in Fair Work Inspectors issuing an infringement notice to employers, or in more simple terms, a hefty fine.
Every employee in the National Workplace System is covered under the National Employment Standards (NES) in the Fair Work Act.
The Fair Work Commission has made a recent decision to increase the average wage of aged care workers by 23%. The increase applies to direct care employees working in aged care.
The Right to Disconnect Bill which was passed last week will come into effect in the coming months once Royal Assent has been received.
In Australia, workers in many outdoor industries are frequently exposed to hot ambient conditions, as most parts of the country experience hot summer and frequent heatwaves that can last for a week or longer.
A worker at Agrigrain Pty Ltd will be paid damages after a machine had exploded in his face.
An Operations Manager at Connect Logistics Pty Ltd, Cris Large, was sentenced to 3 years in jail after four deaths at work. In April 2020, Mohinder Singh was driving a Connect Logistics truck and fell asleep at the wheel, consequently killing four police officers.
Superannuation is now an entitlement under the National Employment Standards in the Fair Work Act as of 1 January 2024. As such, please note the following:
A Fair Work Inspector issued a Compliance Notice to a carpentry business in Victoria’s South Gippsland region after forming a belief that a young full time apprentice carpenter had been underpaid minimum wages during his employment between July 2019 and June 2021.
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