Archive | Legal News

The Omnibus Industrial Relations Bill: Things to Know

The Omnibus Industrial Relations Bill (“the Bill”) was introduced in Parliament on Wednesday 3rd February and quickly picked up criticism surrounding key components of the Bill. Set to help revive the economy following the hit of the pandemic, the Bill reforms the Fair Work Act, specifically targeting the operation of the Fair Work Commission, the […]

Lessons That Can Be Learned from The FWC’s Determination That Workers Need to Be Paid Their Ordinary Earnings During COVID-19 Shutdowns

A recent Fair Work Commission (Commission) decision has determined that workers need to be paid their ordinary earnings during COVID-19 related shutdowns, and cannot be forced to utilise their leave. Stevens & Associates Senior Solicitor Luke Maroney, who acted for the union that brought the claim, shares some lessons that can be learned from the […]

Employee or contractor? The Fair Work Commission apply the legal framework in a recent case

A recent decision[i] of the Fair Work Commission has clarified the legal principles which are used by the Fair Work Commission to determine whether a relationship is that of employer and employee or principal and contractor. Background The Worker (the Worker) performed work for a nursing service (the Business). The initial decision concerned whether the […]

Industrial Relations Reform Update

After a long period of shy and cautious tinkering around the edges, the Federal Coalition Government has given us their first bold foray into major industrial relations reform. On 9 December 2020 Attorney-General and Minister for Industrial Relations, Christian Porter, introduced the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2020 (FW Amendment […]

Full Bench casts wide net for “regular and systematic” casuals protected from unfair dismissal

Periods of casual employment may be more likely to count as service for the purposes of eligibility to bring an unfair dismissal claim following a recent decision by the Fair Work Commission Full Bench (FWCFB). The decision emphasised that the pattern of a casual worker’s hours is not required to be consistent or predictable in […]

Near Maximum Fines for Employer’s “Contrived” Dismissal of Safety Rep

In July 2020, the Federal Court fined an employer and director a total of $60,000 for fabricating the redundancy of an employee after he had lodged complaints with a workplace safety regulator. The employee was successful in his adverse action claim against Melbourne Precast Concrete Nominees Pty Limited (the Company) and its director, after they […]

Employer not obliged to ‘pick up the bill’ for WFH desk: FWC

In a recent decision, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) has upheld the dismissal of a worker who resigned after Red Energy (the Employer) refused to buy him a desk to facilitate working from home. In fact, the Commission held that under the Covid-19 guidelines it should not be automatically expected that employers provide furniture for […]