The long road to compliance in 2019

By Calum Woods and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal They say that smooth seas don’t make skilled sailors. Looking ahead to...

By Calum Woods and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal They say that smooth seas don’t make skilled sailors. Looking ahead to known and predicted changes in the workplace relations space in 2019, HR and People Management professionals can look forward to another eventful year. While the system can be complex, achieving and...

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Court fires warning shots at non-compliant employers

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal For a long time now – since the Fair Work Ombudsman first...

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal For a long time now – since the Fair Work Ombudsman first started prosecuting employers under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) – it has generally been understood that accidental or inadvertent non-compliance with employment laws will be punished much less severely...

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Compliance report reveals underpayments of more than $44,000

By Victoria Hansen and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) released its findings on Degani Bakery...

By Victoria Hansen and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) released its findings on Degani Bakery and Café (Degani) Compliance Activity (Activity) last week, finding non-compliance at 15 out of 16 Degani outlets operating under either a licensee or franchisee arrangement with Degani Australia Pty Ltd. Background The...

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LUSH issue shows businesses must be alert and proactive on staff entitlements

The National Retail Association has today warned all businesses large and small of the need to be alert and...

The National Retail Association has today warned all businesses large and small of the need to be alert and proactive when dealing with their employees’ pay and entitlements, in the wake of the LUSH Cosmetics Australia issue. NRA Chief Executive Officer Dominique Lamb commended LUSH for the way they had...

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Fair Work Ombudsman’s Workplace Basics Campaign

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has recently consulted with the NRA regarding the first phase of the Workplace Basics...

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) has recently consulted with the NRA regarding the first phase of the Workplace Basics Campaign, a national campaign focusing on small business employers and their compliance with fundamental workplace obligations. As part of this first phase, Fair Work Inspectors will be contacting around a thousand...

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Message from the CEO, Dominique Lamb: 16 January 2018

Retailers this week may feel a little like drought-stricken farmers following a drenching, after the Australia Bureau of Statistics...

Retailers this week may feel a little like drought-stricken farmers following a drenching, after the Australia Bureau of Statistics (ABS) released its retail trade report for November. The nation enjoyed a rather robust jump of 1.2 per cent in total sales to $26.4 billion – three times the market forecast...

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Message from the CEO, Dominique Lamb: 9 January 2018

Retailers naturally love a bustling store environment, but following 2017’s frenetic pre-Christmas rush and Boxing Day madness, on the...

Retailers naturally love a bustling store environment, but following 2017’s frenetic pre-Christmas rush and Boxing Day madness, on the back of what seemed like an entire year of uncertainty, it may be time for a little rest and reboot! 2017 certainly threw us a few curveballs - from the absurd...

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NRA Legal: Work Health and Safety Workshops

Employers have a duty of care to ensure the health and safety of their staff. This translates to a...

Employers have a duty of care to ensure the health and safety of their staff. This translates to a need to provide a sufficient system for managing health and safety hazards and risks in the workplace. One way of ensuring compliance with your duty of care is to implement...

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The future of HR and Payroll software

In today’s world where technology is rapidly evolving, the value that an effective HR & Payroll strategy can deliver...

In today’s world where technology is rapidly evolving, the value that an effective HR & Payroll strategy can deliver to an organisation is more important than ever. By leveraging tools, systems and data to draw insights and provide strategic direction to management, HR technology is a necessity in helping organisations...

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Franchise Privacy

FRANCHISORS – CAN YOU ACCESS YOUR FRANCHISEE’S EMPLOYMENT RECORDS TO CONDUCT FAIR WORK COMPLIANCE AUDITS? With the recent amendments to...

FRANCHISORS – CAN YOU ACCESS YOUR FRANCHISEE’S EMPLOYMENT RECORDS TO CONDUCT FAIR WORK COMPLIANCE AUDITS? With the recent amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) to protect vulnerable workers, many franchisors are considering what they can do to protect themselves from liability for contraventions to the Fair Work Act...

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Vulnerable Workers Bill amendments: what you need to know

On Tuesday 5 September 2017, the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Bill 2017 was passed with amendments by...

On Tuesday 5 September 2017, the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Bill 2017 was passed with amendments by both houses of Parliament. The Bill was given Royal Assent by the Governor-General on 14 September 2017, becoming an Act (the VW Act) which will re-write parts of the Fair Work Act 2009 (FW...

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State Parliament pushes for changes to WHS legislation

NRA Legal A new Bill introduced to Queensland State Parliament recently proposes some significant changes to Queensland’s Work Health and...

NRA Legal A new Bill introduced to Queensland State Parliament recently proposes some significant changes to Queensland’s Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (‘WHS Act)’, including a new, criminal offence for industrial manslaughter, carrying up to 20 years’ imprisonment for individuals and $12,615,000 for bodies corporate. The Bill adopts some of...

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Ignorance is no defence

by Alex Millman and Troy Wild, NRA Legal Sometimes, ignorance of the law is the only excuse an employer can...

by Alex Millman and Troy Wild, NRA Legal Sometimes, ignorance of the law is the only excuse an employer can provide in their defence. Unfortunately, as we all know, ignorance is no defence. In recent years we have seen increasing exasperation from the courts when an employer contravenes an Award by...

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Preparing for a knock at the door

by Ian Parker, Migration Specialist, NRA Legal "Knock, Knock" One of the oldest jokes alive is the Knock Knock joke. We...

by Ian Parker, Migration Specialist, NRA Legal "Knock, Knock" One of the oldest jokes alive is the Knock Knock joke. We all know it, and often read books full of them as kids, or least I did anyway. However, as we ourselves get older, and move into the workforce, the idea...

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FWO blitz targets Ballarat without warning

by Victoria Hansen, Lawyer, NRA Legal The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) deployed an unannounced campaign in Ballarat this week to address...

by Victoria Hansen, Lawyer, NRA Legal The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) deployed an unannounced campaign in Ballarat this week to address concerns regarding potential non-compliance with Commonwealth workplace laws. The FWO campaign had a particular focus on businesses in the retail, fast food and hospitality industries and conducted more than 50 visits...

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FWO rolls out regional campaigns

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) is currently running campaigns in multiple regions across Australia to assess compliance and help...

The Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) is currently running campaigns in multiple regions across Australia to assess compliance and help employers and employees understand their legal rights and obligations. According to the FWO, the campaigns include compliance and education activities, such as providing a range of tools, resources and assistance to...

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