Gig Worker Protection Laws Passed in NSW

The Minns Government has proposed legislation, being the Industrial Relations Amendment (Transport Sector Gig Workers and Others) Bill 2025 (NSW) (the Bill), which aims to extend certain provisions of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW) (the Act) to give protections to transport sector gig workers engaged in contracts of carriage by providing these workers with access to the NSW Industrial Relations Commission (the IRC). The Bill has now passed through both Houses of the New South Wales State Parliament.

The Bill is complementary to Federal legislation, in particular, recent reforms to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) which introduced minimum standards for workers in the gig economy. Minister for Industrial Relations, Sophie Cotsis, stated that the Bill “does not seek to replace the new Federal jurisdiction or to duplicate the important work that has taken place federally” and that instead, the Bill seeks to provide extra protections to gig economy workers in the road and transport industry, such as rideshare workers.

Changes Introduced by the Bill

The Bill aims to provide gig economy workers in the road and transport sector in NSW with additional protections, namely, access to the IRC. As such, the Bill will allow the IRC to make determinations with respect to contracts and agreements that regulate the pay and conditions for gig economy workers in this industry. The Bill also seeks to modernise existing provisions under Chapter 6 of the Act which relate to the road transport industry and introduce new enforceable standards across supply chains to ensure the recovery of costs incurred, such as the reimbursement of tolls.

Key Takeaways

The Bill will enable eligible gig workers, such as rideshare workers, in the road and transport sector and/or their representative, to apply to the IRC for contract determinations to regulate or bargain for their pay and conditions. Consequently, it is important that businesses ensure that under any agreement engaging gig workers in the road and transport industry, the conditions and pay under the agreement meet the standard of “fair and reasonable”.

If you have any questions about the Bill and how these changes might impact you as a worker or a business, please do not hesitate to contact Nick Stevens, Josh Hoggett, Evelyn Rivera or Ayla Hutchison.