Are you a Carer who has been Denied WFH? Know Your Rights & Make a Strong Case
Have you requested to work from home due to your carer responsibilities, only to have your employer deny your request or express reluctance in granting it? You are not alone. Many employees in Australia want more flexible work arrangements but don’t always know the best way to ask for them.
When is an accountant liable for underpayment of wages by their client?
Accountants providing clients with payroll, accounting and book-keeping advice and services run the risk of being held accessorily liable for the underpayment of workers by their clients. This could expose you or your firm to potential fines and legal charges simply for your involvement in another person’s contravention of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).
Dealing with the Fair Work Ombudsman
While the Fair Work Ombudsman may appear to some employers mostly as an agent designed to enforce Fair Work legislation, they also serve a very helpful purpose by providing advice and education to businesses and employers in general. Points to bear in mind If you are an employer and are unsure of your Fair Work […]
Does the Fair Work Commission have the power to make a costs order?
What is a costs order? The Fair Work Commission has the power, in certain circumstances, to order a party to pay the legal costs for the other party. The power to do this comes from the Fair Work Commission issuing a ‘costs order’. When does the Fair Work Commission consider a costs order? The Fair […]
Is Uber’s Structure a ‘Legal Fiction’ to Avoid Employee Entitlements?
The British Employment Tribunal recently held that Uber drivers should be treated as ‘workers’ for the purposes of various British statutes, in proceedings brought against Uber by current and former Uber drivers. The decision would be akin to the Fair Work Commission holding that Uber drivers are ‘employees’ for the purposes of the Fair Work […]
Directors and Executives Beware: Liability Under Section 550
The Fair Work Ombudsman (‘FWO’) conducted an investigation into a cleaning business called Grouped Property Services (‘GPS’). The investigation revealed numerous failures to pay minimum entitlements and to comply with the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (‘FW Act’), the Cleaning Services Award 2010 (Cth) and the Clerks Modern Award 2010 (Cth). Many of these failures […]
Penalties ordered against Employer and Directors personally for breaches of the Fair Work Act
The Fair Work Ombudsman is taking an increasingly aggressive approach in seeking to recover civil penalties from employers who have failed to pay their employees in accordance with the applicable Modern Award. In the case of Fair Work Ombudsman v Mamak Pty Ltd [2016] FCCA 2104, Judge Smith of the Federal Circuit Court ordered Mamak, […]