#Industrial Relations
IR flexibility: Should the COVID-19 changes become permanent?
Industrial relations changes have been critical in helping small business employers keep their doors open and staff on their payroll throughout the pandemic. The flexibilities that apply to employers on the JobKeeper wage subsidy, particularly small to medium-sized enterprises, give them the ability to change their duties, their total number of ordinary hours, days and […]
How to ensure the fairness of workplace investigations
When investigating a workplace incident or situation that could have a detrimental effect on the rights, interests or expectations of an employee, procedural fairness must apply. This is especially true if the action is likely to lead to the termination or demotion of the employee. Here’s how to ensure procedural fairness factors in your workplace investigations.
Dispelling myths and untruths about unions
We’ve all heard the rhetoric: ‘the union want this’ and ‘the union said that’, but the fundamental point that HR, media and some employers have forgotten is that the union isn’t made up of officials. It’s not the lady in the office that processes new membership applications. It’s the employees.
IR: What’s next for enterprise bargaining?
As with most IR topics, enterprise bargaining has taken its fair share of beatings. Employer groups continue to call for tighter controls and unions call for loosening of the chains. But what will the next era hold for this contentious industrial relations issue?
Six workplace challenges to expect in the new year
The local workplace will be continually redefined over the next 12 months as demographics, legislation and technology continue to evolve, and HR experts warn employers need to be flexible to employee needs.
Small business IR laws come under fire
The Government’s proposed changes to Industrial Relations laws have come under fire from the Opposition, claiming that they put the interests of unions ahead of jobs. Malcolm Turnbull has called on the Government to change the definition of small business in its new workplace laws; with Nationals Senate leader Barnaby Joyce saying it is wrong […]
Debate over Fair Work Bill escalates
Nationals Leader Warren Truss has spoken out about the Federal Government’s proposed Fair Work Bill, claiming it does more than restore former industrial relations laws: “They’ve done deals clearly with the trade union movement and this legislation goes way beyond what they were given a mandate for from the Australian people,” he says. The proposed […]