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The High Court provides more certainty around casual employees

The High Court has provided further certainty in determining whether an employee is a casual employee in handing down its much anticipated decision in WorkPac Pty Ltd v Rossato [2021] HCA 23 (4 August 2021). However, because of reforms in this space earlier this year, the practical implications of the High Court’s decision in Rossato […]

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Casual employees – review of the new rights and obligations under the NES

The amendments to the National Employment Standard regarding casual employees are about bringing certainty to casual employment arrangements. Employers should now be considering what steps they need to take to comply with the NES including assessing offers of conversion for employees who commenced employment prior to 27 March 2021. This is particularly relevant as there […]

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Employee share schemes — removing cessation of employment as a taxing point and reducing red tape

As part of the 2021-2022 Federal Budget, the Federal Government has announced reforms to employee share ownership in Australia, with those changes designed to make it easier for businesses to offer their employees participation in employee share schemes (ESS) and to help businesses attract and retain the talent they need to compete on a global […]

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Barber v Goodstart – can employers now mandate vaccinations in the workplace?

In a much publicised decision of the Fair Work Commission (FWC) FWC, Bou-Jamie Barber v Goodstart Early Learning [2021] FWC 2156, the termination of a childcare worker who refused to take a flu shot has been upheld. However, while the decision provides some guidance on the issue of vaccinations in the workplace, the FWC cautioned […]

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Respect@Work and future changes to Australia’s sexual harassment laws

The Federal government has today announced that all 55 recommendations contained in the landmark report, Respect@Work: National Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in Australian Workplaces, are either agreed wholly, in part, or in principle, or are noted where they are directed to governments or organisations other than the Federal government. National Inquiry into Sexual Harassment in […]

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Casual IR reforms – A new frontier for employers

On 9 December 2020, the Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations, Christian Porter introduced the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020 (IR Reform Bill) to Parliament, which sought to make significant reforms to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (FW Act) and other related legislation. The IR Reform Bill was drafted following […]

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COVID-19 | Transitioning employees back to the physical workplace – key considerations

With the continued easing of restrictions across Australia, more and more businesses are looking to transition employees from home and back into their physical workplace. Whether your employees have been on a working from home arrangement, a period of stand down, leave or reduced hours, now is the time to consider how things will work for […]

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Reforms to the Fair Work Act – What you need to know

The Federal Government yesterday introduced into parliament The Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020 (Bill), which if passed will amend the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Fair Work Act) and related legislation. The Bill has been developed with input from a range of stakeholders, through a process of IR working […]

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High Court to clarify casual employment – the next instalment in WorkPac v Rossato

On 26 November 2020, the High Court of Australia granted special leave to WorkPac Pty Ltd (WorkPac) to challenge the Full Federal Court decision in WorkPac v Rossato.[1] Since the Full Federal Court decision, employers have been left confused as to how to treat their casual workforce and how to ensure that they are acting […]

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COVID-19 | Trackies to trousers: Transitioning from home to the physical workplace

What will COVID normal look like for your business? With the continued easing of restrictions across Australia, more and more businesses will be looking to transition employees from home (whether on a working from home arrangement or due to a period of stand down, leave or reduced hours) and back into their physical workplace. Just […]

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COVID-19 | Webinar | Trackies to trousers: Transitioning from home to the physical workplace

With the continued easing of COVID-19 restrictions across Australia, more employers are transitioning their employees back to the physical workplace. As with the move to working from home, employers will likely face challenges in the return to face to face operations. In this webinar, Brett Feltham (Partner), Siobhan Mulcahy (Partner) and Emma Moran (Senior Associate) […]

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FMCG Express | October Edition

2020 continues to be an interesting year with COVID-19 still impacting our lives and businesses, although we are cautiously optimistic that we may be turning a corner here in Australia. In this edition of FMCG Express, we bring you some useful COVID-19 reading as we grapple with the ongoing effects of the pandemic and look […]

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