Workplace Relations Changes Next Year. Are you Ready?

Workplace relations may be perceived as a dull subject, but Leah Gibbs has found a reason to be excited about the new National Employment Standards which become law in a matter of weeks.

The Global Financial Crisis, death and destruction from natural disasters in countries neighbouring Australia and debate over the proposed Emissions Trading System have been dominating our national media.

So it’s understandable how major changes to the national workplace relations system which will be introduced across Australia on January 1, 2010 seem to have been overlooked.

While it may fail to grab headlines, the ten new National Employment Standards are essential information for employers and employees because they will impact some key entitlements, procedures and responsibilities in the workplace.

The National Employment Standards will set out:

• maximum weekly hours,
• requests for flexible working arrangements,
• parental leave,
• annual leave,
• personal, carer’s and compassionate leave,
• community service leave,
• long service leave,
• public holidays,
• notice of termination, and
• redundancy pay.

For employees earning under $100,000 a year, the Standards will be complemented by Modern Awards which have been tailored to the needs of particular industries or occupations. The Australian Industrial Relations Commission started award modernisation in April last year.

The National Employment Standards – and Modern Awards which will be activated the same day – are part of the Fair Work Act 2009. The Act came into force on July 1 in the first stage of the new national workplace relations system. It also involves the Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman and Fair Work divisions of the Federal Court and Federal Magistrates Court and replaces that which operated under the Workplace Relations Act 1996.

The exciting news is that an employee’s right to request flexible working arrangements will become law.

Juliet Bourke of Sydney management consultancy Aequus Partners sees it as “a golden opportunity. For years Australian employees have talked about the need for greater work/life balance and employers have resisted by raising concerns about whether flexible work practices might hamper productivity and performance,” she said. “From January 1 we will have access to a National Employment Standard to help resolve these tensions in a practical way.”

The ‘right to request flexibility’ standard would give permanent or long-term casual employees the right to ask an employer to change their work arrangements to enable them to care for their children under school age or disabled children aged under 18. This could include, for example, working from home or starting work an hour earlier twice a week and leaving the workplace two hours earlier another day. Employers would be required to respond, in writing, to all requests within 21 days. An employer would only be able to reject an employee’s request on ‘reasonable business grounds’.

Australian Bureau Statistics figures released last month show there are over one and a half million two-parent families with children in Australia, with most of these families having both parents working. In 80 per cent of these families, at least one of the parents said they were often or always pressed for time trying to balance between work and family.

Mother-of-two, Michelle Burn, was working for a communications company in Sydney’s northern suburbs when she first broached the subject of flexible work arrangements.

“I had returned to work after the birth of my first son but asked if I could compress my 38 hour week into four days so I could be at home an extra day,” she said. “No one had actually made such a request before but being able to do it really meant a lot to me. I think it’s a step forward to make it a right of employees to be able to request changes to work arrangements.”

However, Ms Bourke is concerned that the opportunities for parents to access flexible work arrangements could be lost because of a lack of awareness about the new National Employment Standard.

A survey of more than 500 human resources, diversity and law practitioners conducted in September by Aequus Partners and CCH Australia, revealed found that more than 80 per cent believe employees and managers within their organisations have little or no knowledge of how to request flexibility or respond to applications.

Ms Bourke said a similar workplace flexibility scheme introduced to Britain in 2003 has proven successful for employers and employees.

Federal Workplace Relations Minister, Julia Gillard, believes Australia’s new system also had the balance right between the needs of employers and employees. “A balance that will allow us to become more competitive and more prosperous without taking away the workplace rights and guaranteed minimum standards we’ve historically enjoyed,” she told the National Press Club in September.

Workplace relations changes – brief overview

The Fair Work Act 2009 came into force on July 1 in the first stage of the Rudd Government’s new national workplace relations system.

The system also involves the Office of the Fair Work Ombudsman and Fair Work divisions of the Federal Court and Federal Magistrates Court and replaces that which operated under the Workplace Relations Act 1996.

Key elements of the new system are:

• a legislated safety net of 10 National Employment Standards
• new modern awards
• revised enterprise bargaining arrangements
• streamlined protections dealing with workplace and industrial rights, including protection against discrimination and unfair dismissal
• two new organisations to regulate the system:
• Fair Work Australia and the Fair Work Ombudsman.
• The new system covers the majority of workplaces in Australia and started on July 1 this year when most of the key elements were enacted. The two remaining ones – the National Employment Standards and modern awards – will start on January 1 next year.

The new independent body, Fair Work Australia, will be the national workplace relations tribunal and Four Australian Government agencies – the Australian Industrial Relations Tribunal, Australian Industrial Registry, Australian Fair Pay Commission and Australian Fair Pay Commission secretariat will cease to exist.

The Workplace Authority will not exist from January 31 next year.

The Fair Work Ombudsman replaced the Workplace Ombudsman and took on the general advisory function of the Workplace Authority on July 1 this year.

The Office of the Fair Work Building Industry Inspectorate will replace the Australian Building and Construction Commission on February 1, 2010.

For more information call the Fair Work Infoline on 13 13 94 or visit the Fair Work Australia website, www.fwa.gov.au

Sources

• Australian Government Departmentof Education, Employment and Workplace Relations -
• Fair Work online – http://www.fairwork.gov.au
• Fair Work Australia website – http://www.fwa.gov.au
• Australian Industrial Relations Commission website – http://www.airc.gov.au
• Employment and workplace relations services for Australians – http://www.workplace.gov.au
• Australian Bureau of Statistics – http://www.abs.gov.au
• Aequus Partners and CCH Australia survey

Nicole Cowan is a journalist and editor who has joined the growing ranks of treechangers, relocating from Sydney to country NSW. She is using her writing skills and media know-how for clients across the state through Write Destiny. info@writedestiny.com.au

Tagged as: Australian Fair Pay Commission, Fair Work Act 2009, Julia Gillard, legislation, National Employment Standard, Workplace relations