Introduction Workplace investigations are often seen as the best (and only) way to deal with sensitive employment matters. This has led to some businesses adopting a “when in doubt – investigate” approach, costing employers many hours in emotionally fatiguing, workplace disruptive, and moral-sapping workplace investigations. While there are no doubt situations in which investigations should, [...]
WestmoreJacobs presented a webinar on Workplace Investigations on 27 August 2024, covering the pros and cons of conducting an investigation and when it is necessary to do one. We addressed whether a workplace investigation should be undertaken, explored the different types of investigations, talked about choosing a workplace investigator and some examples of investigations that [...]
Employment law is complex and ever changing. Mistakes can easily be made, often unintentionally. Unfortunately, these mistakes can leave employers unstuck dealing with significant adverse consequences. In this article we consider a number of cautionary tales in the area of employment law. Contractor or employee? For any business, correctly engaging a worker as either [...]
The recent case of WorkPac v Rossato (“Rossato”) has amplified uncertainty around the definition of casual employment, pending an upcoming High Court appeal. The Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020 (“Bill”), introduced by the Federal Government on 9 December 2020, proposes to resolve this uncertainty. Among other things, the [...]
2020 is sure to be remembered as the year where the only certainty was uncertainty. COVID-19 and related challenges have changed countless industries, and prompted sweeping employment law changes at record pace. In our “2020 Wrap-Up” we look back at some of the key developments in employment law in 2020, many of which will remain [...]
Despite characterising the claims as “rapacious”, the Federal Circuit Court has awarded over $1.3 million to a group of former Macquarie Bank wealth advisors for unpaid entitlements. This is notwithstanding the former employees earning significant commissions between 2013 and 2019, many in the millions of dollars. The three related underpayment claims involved over 50 wealth [...]
By now, many businesses will be preparing for reduced JobKeeper payments which start from 28 September 2020. During the first extension period of the JobKeeper scheme, from 28 September 2020 to 3 January 2021, JobKeeper payments will be reduced to $1,200 or $750 per fortnight depending on the hours worked by eligible employees. Payments will [...]
A signed employment contract is often the bedrock of good risk management. For me, it’s as important as making sure I always have enough fuel in my car to travel up to 5km from my home (and back again) to get groceries! All too often, employers get themselves into legal trouble by not having signed [...]
COVID-19 has proved to be a stubborn thorn in the side of Australia’s economic recovery. Thus, it has been necessary for the Federal Government to extend its economic support past the original end date of 27 September 2020. On 1 September 2020, the Government passed the Coronavirus Economic Response Package (JobKeeper Payments) Amendment Bill 2020. [...]
The introduction of JobKeeper was accompanied by changes to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (“FW Act”) which gave eligible employers new powers. This included the power to issue a “JobKeeper enabling direction” (“JED”) to Jobkeeper employees. Among other things, JEDs allow employers to unilaterally reduce an employee’s hours, including to zero. This is referred [...]
