Throughout early 2022, the Victorian Chamber has been encouraging businesses to review their employment contracts, practices and alerting them to the support available.

Enterprise agreements made before the introduction of the Fair Work Act 2009 are increasingly in the spotlight. If you have a pre-2009 enterprise agreement or are planning to renegotiate an old enterprise agreement, read on for practical tips to help you get on the right track.

As working from home continues in 2022, employers must manage the associated safety risks.

When hiring staff, businesses often roll out the same employment contract they have been using for years, updating basic details without considering whether the terms and conditions are appropriate for the role. When it comes to engaging new employees, a more considered approach should be taken; we shouldn’t set and forget.

In a recent decision, the Fair Work Commission provided helpful insights into how its bullying jurisdiction works in practice, as well as offering some practical tips for employers when presented with the challenging task of performance managing staff.

Regulations that previously required WorkSafe to be notified if an employee, contractor or a contractor's employee received a positive COVID-19 diagnosis and had attended the workplace within their infectious period have been removed.

The Fair Work Commission has rejected an employer’s application to reduce redundancy pay after failing to prove the organisation had secured “acceptable” alternative employment for its departing employees.

The beginning of the year is the ideal opportunity to reassess your HR documentation and organisational strategy. This can include employment contracts, resetting expectations about standards of behaviour and revising working arrangements. In 2022, be proactive and confident to recast your existing approach with a new strategy.

On 1 July this year, WorkSafe Victoria introduced provisional payments to provide better support for workers with a mental injury. Eligible workers and volunteers who submit a mental injury claim can now access provisional payments for reasonable treatment and services while their claim is being determined.

The Fair Work Commission has upheld the CFMMEU’s challenge to BHP’s Site Access Requirement rendering a mandatory vaccination requirement unlawful and unreasonable.

There has been a substantial increase in staff turnover around the world as restrictions ease and employees have been able to return to the workplace. Here are some simple tips to help ensure your business can adapt and tackle the great resignation head on.

As many businesses continue to grapple with the complex laws around wages, mistakes can easily be made and quickly add up to substantial underpayments.

The Fair Work Commission has refused to award compensation to a hotel worker who would not agree to a temporary reduction in hours, despite finding that she was unlawfully stood down. The Commission maintained she failed to “share the burden of the pandemic.”

The Fair Work Commission has confirmed a company’s rejected request for an employee to return to full-time hours was consistent with the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code and did not warrant an unfair dismissal.

The Victorian Chamber is delighted to extend an invitation to our members and clients to participate in a design workshop to help identify innovative and practical education approaches to improve equality in the workplace.

We know business and workers need to do their bit to manage and slow the spread of COVID-19. Every business should: have a COVIDSafe plan; provide hand sanitiser; regularly clean high-touch surfaces; comply with rules regarding vaccination; ensure staff wear face masks where required; and use QR codes. In addition, some businesses must conduct COVID-19 surveillance tests and some are recommended to implement a testing scheme.