Australian Employment, Industrial Relations and Safety Webinars

Recently the Australian Federal Government tabled the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill 2023 (Cth) in the House of Representatives. The Bill proposes reforms that will have a substantial impact on employers, employees, principals, and contractors, and in many respects proposes even more significant changes than the Secure Jobs, Better Pay amending legislation from last year.

In this webinar a panel of our Australian Employment, IR and Safety partners dissect the Bill and discuss what these changes mean for employers. We covered the key changes being introduced in the Bill, including:

• Same job, same pay orders ("closing the labour hire loophole")
• Criminalising wage theft, underpayment penalties, compliance and enforcement
• Changes for road trasport contractors and gig economy participants, including new access to collective bargaining and minimum conditions
• Sham contracting arrangements
• Enterprise bargaining changes
• Strengthened protections against discrimination

In this webinar Sydney Workplace Health & Safety Partner, Nerida Jessup will facilitated a discussion with Lauren Selby, Head Office Advisory Team (HOAT) Partner, and Melanie Debenham, Environment, Planning & Communities Partner on changing governance practices under current and evolving regulatory frameworks, how ESG-driven standards are impacting comprehensive and broader reporting – and how boards are positioning themselves to discharge their obligations with care and diligence whilst delivering on ESG ambitions.

To listen to the podcast, please visit the Employment, IR and Safety podcast series here.

In this webinar we explore some of the more unusual cases in recent years which typify the broadening of the boundaries of WHS law. Managing Partner Steve Bell moderates a panel of our work health and safety experts across Australia as they each reflect on changes in their jurisdiction.

To listen to the podcast, please visit the Employment, IR and Safety podcast series here.

The passage of the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022 (Act) in December last year, marks the most extensive industrial relations reform seen since the introduction of the Fair Work Act some 13 years ago, and the impact of this legislation is significant.

While further industrial relations reform (such as on ‘same job, same pay’, among other topics) is expected to follow this year, the reforms passed are significant and will substantively impact how Australian employers structure and manage their workforces and set terms and conditions of employment.

This session will provide an overview of the key elements of the Act and what it means for Australian employers.

To listen to the podcast, please visit the Employment, IR and Safety podcast series here.

In our first Employment & IR Briefing Series event for 2023, Wendy Fauvel moderated a panel of experts spanning our national Employment and IR team including Rachel Dawson, Shivchand Jhinku and Brad Popple.

In this webinar our panel broke down some common myths and shared insights on what employers can be doing to effectively navigate these changes. Our panel also looked forward to what might come next, including the “closing loophole” legislation that is planned by Labor in the second half of the year.

To listen to the podcast, please visit the Employment, IR and Safety podcast series here.