Victorian small business workers are set to gain the same work from home rights as those at major corporations. But not everyone agrees it is the right move.
What’s happening: The Victorian Government has announced the first major update to its work from home legislation, extending protections to small business workers.
Why this matters: The update addresses a long-standing gap in protections, but the debate it has sparked goes to the heart of how workplace rights are best designed and who bears the cost of getting it wrong.
If you can do your job from home, you will have the right to do so, no matter the size of your workplace. That is the first major update to the Allan Labor Government’s world-first work from home laws, announced this week. Small business workers who can work from home will have that right protected two days a week. The Council of Small Business Organisations Australia says the proposal adds unnecessary complexity.
At the moment, the bigger the employer, the greater the chance of being allowed to work from home. Flexibility is less common in smaller businesses, where more than 1.3 million Victorians work. While not all small business workers are able to work from home, those that can, the government says, deserve the same rights as someone working for a big four bank.
The government consulted extensively ahead of the update. The largest-ever Victorian Government survey, with 37,485 responses, found three quarters of employees said the right to work from home was extremely important to them. More than 3,200 said they did not feel they could ask their current employer to work from home. Of those who do not work from home but physically could, most had asked for it, and most were refused.
The data on remote work’s impact is also part of the government’s case. More than a third of workers, including 60 per cent of professionals, regularly work from home. It saves families an average of $110 a week, or $5,308 every year. Victorians are now saving more than three hours a week on average in commuting time. Workforce participation is 4.4 per cent higher than before the pandemic.
Premier Jacinta Allan said the laws are about fairness. “Work from home works for families, because it saves time and money and it gets more parents working. If you can work from home for a small business, you deserve the same rights as someone working for a big bank. Not everyone can work from home, but everyone can benefit.”
Minister for Industrial Relations Jaclyn Symes pointed to the productivity case. “Working from home cuts costs, not productivity. Many workers who work from home already turn travel time into work time, saving them money and benefiting their employer.”
COSBOA CEO Skye Cappuccio said small business is not opposed to flexible work arrangements, including working from home, but that the Victorian proposal risks creating confusion, duplication, and unnecessary red tape. “Small business already operates under the federal Fair Work framework, which requires employers to genuinely consider reasonable requests for flexible work, including working from home. This proposal duplicates existing federal legislation, adds another layer of compliance, and creates further uncertainty for small business owners who are already spending almost a day each week on regulatory paperwork,” she said.
Cappuccio said a one-size-fits-all model does not reflect how small businesses operate. “Many small businesses rely on in-person collaboration, supervision, mentoring and on-the-job training to build skills and maintain productivity. Turning work-from-home into a legally enforceable state-based entitlement, rather than a negotiated arrangement, risks undermining those dynamics.”
She also raised questions about dispute resolution under a separate Victorian regime. “In a small business, it is often the owner making these decisions personally. If there is a disagreement about what is reasonable, whether a role can be performed remotely, or how many days are appropriate, it is unclear how that dispute would be resolved under a separate Victorian regime and who ultimately determines the outcome. That uncertainty alone creates risk, cost and hesitation for small employers.”
COSBOA first raised concerns in August 2025 about the Victorian Government’s rushed work-from-home proposal, warning against unnecessary duplication of the national workplace relations framework. Cappuccio said the organisation’s position remains unchanged. “Small business supports genuine, negotiated flexibility. What we do not support is unnecessary duplication of federal law and the creation of a standalone state regime that adds confusion, compliance burden and cost. We urge the Victorian government to work within the national framework, designed to balance the needs of employers and employees, rather than create additional layers of regulation that disproportionately impact small businesses.”
The announcement also carries a political dimension. Every day, unions hear from workers denied reasonable work-from-home requests. Across the country, the government says, Liberals are planning to end remote work and force people back to the office. In Victoria, the government says work from home will be just another thing that Jess Wilson and the Liberals will cut. The laws, it says, will protect it.
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