Changes to workplace laws commence today!
From today (26 August 2024), a number of important changes to workplace laws commence.
These changes include:
The right to disconnect for eligible employees (this change does not apply for small business employers with fewer than 15 employees until August 2025);
The new casual employment definition and “employee choice pathway” to permanent employment;
New minimum protections and standards for “employee-like” workers in the gig economy and contractors in road transport; and
Changes to independent contractor rules, including the new definition of employment and unfair contract terms.
The Fair Work Ombudsman has updated the Fair Work Information Statement, Casual Employment Information Statement and Fixed Term Contract Information Statement to reflect the changes – so ensure you download the latest versions of these statements from the Fair Work Ombudsman website when issuing these to your employees
More about the right to disconnect changes
The right to disconnect has been appearing a lot in the news – but for those who aren’t aware of what this means, here is a short summary:
This is the right for eligible employees to refuse employer or third party contact (or attempted contact) outside of work hours, unless the refusal is unreasonable.
This means an employee can refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact from an employer or a third party.
When working out whether an employee’s refusal is unreasonable, certain factors must be considered, including:
(a) the reason for the contact;
(b) how the contact is made and how disruptive it is;
(c) how much the employee is compensated or paid extra for being available to perform work during the period they are contacted or working additional hours outside their ordinary hours of work;
(d) the employee’s role in the business and level of responsibility; and
(e) the employee’s personal circumstances, including family or caring responsibilities.
The right to disconnect will be a workplace right under general protection laws (so an employer cannot, for example, dismiss an employee for exercising this right).
Modern Awards will have a right to disconnect term explaining how the right will work in different industries and occupations.
Disputes about the right should be first discussed at the workplace level and resolved, but if that is not possible, then parties can go to the Fair Work Commission to deal with the dispute.
We also recently held a webinar on the casual changes. If you are interested in learning more about these changes, you can view the webinar here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rf8Mu4v17DU
Please get in touch with our employment and industrial relations team if you would like further advice about the changes and how they may apply to you or your business.