When an employee has a change in their employing entity, such as when a business is on-sold, it can be difficult to understand what happens to an employee’s existing employment entitlements. This article aims to summarise how these entitlements are treated when a transfer of a business occurs.

Payroll compliance was thrown into the spotlight a number of years ago, when it was uncovered that many well-known Australian brands had underpaid their staff by millions. Since then, there has been a steady flow of organisations from various industries who have been found to have underpaid their employees. The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) responded by increasing their use of detection and enforcement measures and targeting areas that were shown to have higher levels of non-compliance.

Business risks keep climbing as awareness grows of adverse action claims under the Fair Work Act 2009 (FWA). 

The Salt Shaker Method was created by a New York restaurateur to demonstrate the key principles of managing employees and keeping their performance up to a certain standard. The method outlines the concept of constant, gentle pressure which ER Strategies General Manager David Price, explains in the video below.

ER Strategies has recently launched its new referral program, designed to benefit many of our awesome clients who have been spreading the word about our services for many years. If you refer someone who signs up for one of our WorkShield packages or otherwise spends a minimum of $2,500, you will receive a $150 voucher as a reward.

ER Strategies has operated since 1999 and in that time, we have had clients approach us with many different situations. These situations have led us to develop a number of strategies through understanding what works and what doesn’t. One such strategy that we have used over and over again is the ‘Champion Method’. Designed by ER Strategies’ Director, the strategy increases the employee’s input in a redundancy process to achieve a mutually beneficial outcome between the employee and employer.

On 8 August 2022, the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has announced that a record $532 million in unpaid wages and entitlements was recovered for more than 384,000 workers in 2021-22. The recovered amount is more than three times more than the record 2020-21 amount of $148 million and has benefited five times more workers within Australia.

A payroll audit is a review of what employees were paid and the overall compliance throughout the payroll audit process. Under our audit service, an independent calculation is performed of what employees should have been paid and this is then compared to what they were actually paid to identify any under-, or over-payments. Payroll processes, including the record keeping processes, are also checked, ensuring that the whole system is reviewed for any non-compliance.

Each financial year, the Fair Work Ombudsmen (FWO) releases its Compliance and Enforcement Priorities. These are designed to highlight areas where the FWO believes there to be a lack of employment compliance, or potential for underpayments, within a specific industry or sector and where they will be devoting their attention and resources in the coming year.

Businesses operating in Australia are subject to a number of requirements around record-keeping obligations. Whilst it may not seem like the most important part of running a business, it plays a significant role in employment compliance and the punishments for not being compliant can severely impact a business. Through this guide we’ll specify what details businesses must record and why it is so important for businesses to record them.

The issue of meal and rest breaks began with one class action in a single franchise network a few months ago, however now it has evolved to numerous class actions across multiple different franchises. The claims from the workers and their representation are essentially the same, they have been either deliberately denied rest or meal breaks, or the breaks haven’t been enforced as required under the awards or agreements they are covered by.

Whilst most businesses are winding down for a break over the Christmas period, some employers in Queensland, Western Australia and Tasmania are frantically trying to assess whether they will have sufficient staffing levels to survive the holidays.

As COVID-19 restrictions gradually lift across Australia, employees will be returning to work, or in some states, they may have already returned. It is important that employers therefore have a plan in place for their employees to return to work and how they will manage the COVID risk when they are back.

General Protections laws are intended to protect basic workplace rights, including freedom of association and shielding workers from workplace discrimination in accordance with international labour conventions. Under these laws, it is unlawful to take adverse action against a person because of a proscribed reason. Additionally, General Protections laws provide effective relief for persons who have suffered adverse actions, such as being discriminated against, victimised, or have experienced other forms of unfair treatment.

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There are many different reasons as to why a business may be employment non-compliant and/or underpay its employees. Often an important factor is the industry that a business operates in, which can impact on the systems they use or even how complicated their employment obligations can be.  

As Australian employment law develops, it becomes harder for employers to keep up with it. Employees are becoming more aware of their workplace rights too. Therefore, employers must ensure that they understand their obligations when it comes to dismissing employees, reducing the risk of an unfair dismissal or other claim, such as a General Protections claim.

In our article about a bullying case leading to a record $5.2 million award of damages, we highlighted how employees are now increasingly making general protections claims. However, general protections claims can even be made by people who aren’t even employed in your business. Prospective employees or contractors are protected from being adversely affected due to a variety of attributes including but not excluded to, race, religion and gender. These are called protected attributes.