Late last year, the Federal Parliament passed significant amendments to the Fair Work Act to have companies remove pay secrecy provisions within employment contracts, among other workplace amendments.

Implementing effective workplace policies that set clear expectations and obligations for employees and employers is a critical requirement for any business.

Two recent High Court decisions emphasised the importance of written contractual agreements and the difficulty for businesses to correctly classify whether certain workers should be considered employees or independent contractors.

Due to the extent of modern awards and legislative requirements, many businesses can find it difficult to navigate the workplace relations system.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has dismissed an employer’s jurisdictional objection to their former casual employee who filed a general protections claim after his hours were reduced to zero following a mental health absence due to work-related stress.

The Clean Energy Council (CEC) has reported an increase in renewable investments but not enough to reach renewable energy targets.

State and federal grants are available now for small and medium businesses seeking energy efficiency upgrades as well as manufacturing growth opportunities.

As part of the Federal Government’s Secure Jobs Better Pay legislation, workplace sexual harassment is prohibited under the Fair Work Act from 6 March 2023.

Enterprise bargaining between an employer, employees and their representatives must follow rules and obligations for an agreement to be made and approved.

The Federal Circuit and Family Court of Australia has denied a General Protections application with the Fair Work Commission (FWC) after finding that an experienced human resources manager was not forced to resign by her employer after her unpaid parental leave request was denied.

When a workplace has an employee with patterns of absence or excessive levels of absence, it can make it difficult for a team to perform at its best.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has awarded compensation to a truck driver who was unfairly dismissed for sleeping on the job after the company did not uphold procedural fairness during the dismissal.

In late 2022, the Federal Parliament passed the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Amendment Act 2022, featuring some of the most significant changes to Australia’s industrial relations laws in the last decade.

The Victorian Chamber has released a roadmap aimed at helping reduce energy prices, ensure the reliability of energy supply, capitalise on investment opportunities and support businesses in the transition to a net-zero economy.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has awarded compensation to an employee unfairly dismissed for making “unsophisticated” comments after the company did not allow procedural fairness during the dismissal.

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) denied an employee’s unfair dismissal application after he took a period of unauthorised leave to visit a relative overseas and subsequently filed his application 15 days late.