Employment

Police Clearances – What you need to know as an employer

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry June 2, 2021BlogAdvice, business, Employment, employment relations, HR, human resources, recruitment, Workplace, workplace relations Leave a comment

A National Police Clearance is a summary of a person’s police history in Australia. It is a list of a person’s disclosable court outcomes and includes any pending charges from all jurisdictions across the country. Conducting a police clearance on a potential new employee is often a staple part of the recruitment process for many employers. The rationale being; to protect the business from any future criminal activity and to ensure a potential new employee, is trustworthy and of good … Continue reading “Police Clearances – What you need to know as an employer”

Changes to casual employment

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry May 3, 2021Blogcasual, Employment, employment relations, HR, payrol, workforce Leave a comment

On 26 March 2021 the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2021, which deals with changes to casual employment, received royal assent. The Bill comes into effect from 27 March 2021 and has a number of implications for employers that employ casual staff. The main changes include: Introducing a definition of casual employment; Casual conversion provisions; Offsetting certain National Employment Standards; and Introduction of a Casual Fair Work Information Statement. What is a casual employee? … Continue reading “Changes to casual employment”

JobKeeper Payment – Frequently Asked Questions

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry April 20, 2020April 20, 2020Newscovid-19, Employment, jobkeeper Leave a comment

On 30 March 2020, the Australian Government announced a new JobKeeper Payment for eligible businesses, to help them retain employees during the COVID-19 crisis and recover quickly afterwards. While businesses are strongly encouraged to contact their accountants to discuss their eligibility, this is what we know so far. Please note: The JobKeeper Payment has now passed through Parliament. There are key steps (outlined below) that small business owners need to take to be eligible for the first round of payments … Continue reading “JobKeeper Payment – Frequently Asked Questions”

Fair Work Commission responds to COVID-19 Pandemic: Award Variations

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry April 20, 2020Blogcovid-19, Employment, fair work, leave entitlements, pandemic Leave a comment

In a statement released by the Fair Work Commission Full Bench (FWCFB) on 1 April 2020 they provided their provisional view on temporary changes to be made to 103 Modern Awards in response to the current COVID-19 Pandemic. These changes are aimed at providing more flexibility for employers and protection for their employees during these unprecedented times. The proposed changed include the ability to access unpaid leave, which the FWCFB refers to as “unpaid pandemic leave”, and to access annual … Continue reading “Fair Work Commission responds to COVID-19 Pandemic: Award Variations”

New annualised wage provisions – what does this mean for my business?

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry February 25, 2020Blog, NewsAdvice, Employment, industrial awards, wages, workplace relations Leave a comment

From 1 March 2020, new rules for annualised salaries will make keeping timesheets and conducting yearly pay reviews compulsory for some businesses. The rules also restrict how long employers have to compensate workers for underpayment. The Fair Work Commission’s update to 18 Modern Awards is intended to ensure workers on annualised wages are not worse off than those paid an hourly or weekly wage. Members who have employees on annualised wage arrangements, pay their employees a flat rate of pay … Continue reading “New annualised wage provisions – what does this mean for my business?”

Employment Records – What are our obligations?

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry January 28, 2020January 28, 2020BlogAdvice, Employment, HR Leave a comment

The Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FW Act) governs a national system employers’ record keeping obligations when it comes to employees. The FW Act states that an employer must make, and keep, employee records (as prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations 2009 (FW Regs) in relation to each of its employees for 7 years. Employers must make and keep records relating to the following (this list is not exhaustive): Basis of employment (i.e. full time, part time or casual) Wages … Continue reading “Employment Records – What are our obligations?”

LinkedIn reveals the skills employers want this year in Australia

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry January 17, 2020January 28, 2020BlogAdvice, Employment, human resources, skills Leave a comment

The most useful skills Aussies need to land a job or succeed at work have been revealed. But one stands out among the rest. A LinkedIn analysis of 10 million Australian profiles revealed it was the most-sought soft skill, followed by teamwork, persuasion, adaptability and time management. LinkedIn Learning Solutions senior director for Asia Pacific Jason Laufer said organisations needed people who could take a new approach to tasks. “This could be (applied to anyone from) software engineers to HR … Continue reading “LinkedIn reveals the skills employers want this year in Australia”

Employees resigning in the ‘heat of the moment’ – When a resignation is not a resignation

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry October 28, 2019BlogEmployment, Relations Leave a comment

When going through performance management or disciplinary action, quite often an employee can become stressed or frustrated and, in some instances, these emotions can escalate to the employee proclaiming they have “had enough” or “I’m resigning” followed by the employee leaving the workplace. This article explores the risks and best practise for dealing with a resignation that occurs in the ‘heat of the moment’. Has my employee resigned? A resignation generally occurs when an employee voluntarily decides to terminate their … Continue reading “Employees resigning in the ‘heat of the moment’ – When a resignation is not a resignation”

Managing injuries that occur outside of the workplace

Broome Chamber of Commerce & Industry August 14, 2019BlogAdvice, Employment, HR, Relations, Workplace Leave a comment

My employee needs to be on light duties because of a weekend sport injury (unrelated to work), but we don’t have any roles that meet that requirement, can we terminate them? Regardless of where an injury occurs, employers have an obligation to support and accommodate their employees safe return to work. Under s352 and s772 (1)(a) of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (the FW Act), an employee is protected from termination of their employment as a result of … Continue reading “Managing injuries that occur outside of the workplace”