Change to Casual Employment On Friday 26 March 2021, the Fair Work Act 2009 (FWA) was amended to change workplace rights and obligations for casual employees. The changes were made by the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Act 2021 (Amendment Act). These changes came into effect on Saturday 27 [...]
New laws to protect employees from deliberate wage theft by an employer were introduced in September 2020 in Queensland. The new laws criminalise deliberate wage theft and also provide a simple, quick and low-cost process for wage recovery claims. Congregations, presbyteries and Synod Office have a responsibility to ensure that employees are paid correctly. Employees [...]
On 9 September 2020, Queensland’s parliament passed the Criminal Code and Other Legislation (Wage Theft) Amendment Act 2020, which inserts wage theft into Queensland’s criminal legislation as an offence. The Act provides that employee entitlements are a thing capable of being stolen. The employee entitlements that can be stolen include: unpaid hours or [...]
The Queensland Synod office have previously advised that the Queensland Government have passed legislation to create the Community Services Portable Long Service Leave Scheme. The scheme will apply to all workers who: perform community services work, or support the provision of community services (for example, administrative and/or executive staff). To find out who [...]
On 13 August 2020, the High Court of Australia handed down a decision clarifying how paid personal/carer's leave is accrued and taken under the National Employment Standards (NES). In the decision of Mondelez Australia Pty Ltd vs. AMWU and Ors [2020] HCA 29, the High Court clarified that: the entitlement to 10 days of personal/carer's [...]
Last week the Fair work Commission (FWC) announced the new minimum wage increase to be 1.75 per cent. Unlike in previous years, the FWC has adopted a staggered approach to the minimum wage increase across industries as they recognise not all sectors of the economy have been impacted in the same way by COVID-19. The [...]
A bill to create a Portable Long Service Leave scheme (PLSL) for the community services sector has passed the Queensland Government, but a commencement date has not yet been determined. The PLSL is similar to schemes established for the construction and contract cleaning industries. The Bill recognises that employees who work within this sector typically [...]
You would have seen reports in the media about the recent decision of WorkPac Pty Ltd v Rossato in the Full Court of the Federal Court of Australia. The decision reconfirmed that a person paid and designated by their employer as a “casual employee” can still be considered a permanent part-time or full-time employee, despite [...]
The National Executive Development Program is a course that aims to provide professional development for current and emerging leaders within the Uniting Church. The course recognises that executive leadership skills are essential for current and potential leaders across the Uniting Church. Students will participate in a number of intensives and enjoy a cohort experience with [...]
Single Touch Payroll (STP) is a government initiative to streamline business reporting obligations. All Uniting Church organisations who process payroll for their employees will need to urgently review the below information and act accordingly. Single Touch Payroll started from 1 July 2018 for employers with 20 or more employees. UCA Organisations of this size should either be [...]