Last week I had the pleasure of co-hosting a joint event between TRANSEARCH Australia and Gadens on Navigating the New Australian Employment Law Changes. I was joined by Amanda Junkeer, Partner, and Diana Diaz, Special Counsel, to take a deep dive into the evolving employment laws from both a legal and HR perspective.
This particular information session and thought leadership event connected like-minded executives and was designed to help them and their organisations navigate the new laws to stay informed, ensure compliance and mitigate risk. Furthermore, many of these new laws have a strong Employer Value Proposition (EVP) overlay. Having a good grasp of the laws also helps with your retention and attraction initiatives, and can apply at all levels in the organisation. Review the key take outs from our session and ask yourself, how can I apply these as a carrot, not a stick?
Key Take Outs
- Redefinition of Independent Contractors: From 26 August 2024; we may see a rise in legal challenges and disputes regarding employment versus independent contractor status; have proactive discussions about tenure at key milestones; consider engagement for less than 90 days, or engage as a company.
- Casual Employees and Casual Conversion: The definition of a ‘casual’ employee will be based on the true nature of the employment relationship, not just the written contract; employers should consider aligning contracts and ongoing work patterns with the new definition; it will now be up to the casual to request conversion to permanent employment.
- Restraint of Trade Clauses: Shift towards banning non-compete clauses; consider longer notice periods and well-crafted non-solicitation, confidentiality and intellectual property clauses.
- Same Job, Same Pay: Labour hire employees must be paid at least the ‘protected rate of pay’, being the full rate of pay under the host employer’s enterprise agreement; engage them for their specialisation, not just as an additional resource.
- Right to Disconnect: Must be reasonable; review policies and practices around out-of-hours work and communication; a balance between disconnection rights and flexibility; regulators focussing on psychosocial risk.
- Return to Work: Flexible working arrangements now a key part of EVP; employers must balance business needs with employee satisfaction and productivity; trend is for more employees returning to the office (30% in DEC 23, increased to 40% in JUN 24); avoiding the sense of “living at work”.
- Work from Anywhere: Offers flexibility and helps attract the best; however, consider the laws applicable to the employment arrangement including tax, insurance and visa regulations.
- Workplace Sexual Harassment: Post COVID there was a spike in harassment claims, now we’re seeing less socialisation amongst employees to avoid the risk; create a respectful culture where everyone feels safe.
- Gender Pay Gap: New reporting laws involve addressing the gender pay gap in the public spotlight; progressive employers attract top candidates, so make it part of your EVP.
- Wage Theft: Payroll is a thankless task; get it right and no one notices, get it wrong and trust is broken forever; regular payroll audits are crucial to prevent wage theft and maintain employee trust.
The pace of change to workplace laws is unprecedented. Board Directors and Executives are now responsible for compliance with many of these legislated changes and in some cases, can be held personally liable for contraventions. Therefore, the implications need to be understood by and driven from the top. Seeking legal advice and attending industry forums can help you navigate changes to workplace laws.
Retaining and attracting top talent at all levels in the organisation requires a good grasp of the key take outs from our session. Measure your culture (we can help) and revisit your EVP. Don’t hesitate to contact me or a member of the TRANSEARCH Australia team if we can assist you with any of the topics covered.
TRANSEARCH Australia hosts a variety of events for senior leaders and executives to engage in key themes affecting the workplace and our areas of expertise. Click here to express your interest in attending future events.
Bill Sakellaris has a long and reputable profile in executive search spanning 25 years. His prime focus is on securing CEOs, ‘C’ suite executives and senior professionals across a broad range of sectors including industrials, property, infrastructure and professional services. Bill is the Managing Director of TRANSEARCH Australia and Regional Vice President – Asia Pacific of TRANSEARCH International. Read more…
