Meet our Finalists: Franchisee of the Year

Our Meet our Finalist series begins with a look at our three Franchisee of the Year entrants. Crust Mt Lawley,...

Our Meet our Finalist series begins with a look at our three Franchisee of the Year entrants. Crust Mt Lawley, Brumby's Bakery Bulimba, and Michel's Patisserie Toronto fight for the title this year.

Read More

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...

Read More

Message from the CEO – July 31

The Federal Government’s Parliamentary Franchising Inquiry is now well underway – the findings of which are due at the...

The Federal Government’s Parliamentary Franchising Inquiry is now well underway – the findings of which are due at the end of September. As an attempt to establish the fact among the fiction, the Inquiry has been honing in on areas like how the Code is being operated and its effectiveness,...

Read More

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...

Read More

Employment law legislation update

Written by Alex Millman Members will recall from previous news alerts that there are several pieces of legislation amending the...

Written by Alex Millman Members will recall from previous news alerts that there are several pieces of legislation amending the Fair Work Act currently waiting for the attention of the Senate before they can become law. Foremost among these is the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Bill 2017, which aims...

Read More

New Franchise TV show airs this Sunday

NATIONWIDE A new FREE-TO-AIR TV program called The Franchise Show, will launch Australia-wide on Channel 7, this Sunday 2 October. Hosted by finance...

NATIONWIDE A new FREE-TO-AIR TV program called The Franchise Show, will launch Australia-wide on Channel 7, this Sunday 2 October. Hosted by finance commentator and consumer advocate Effie Zahos, the weekly half-hour program will explore the positives, the pitfalls, and the personalities behind the growing franchising sector in Australia. “Franchising is a fundamental cornerstone of Australia’s...

Read More

Message from the CEO: 29 August 2016

There were two major developments in retail this week which show just how volatile our sector can be, and...

There were two major developments in retail this week which show just how volatile our sector can be, and how challenging the environment remains for retail business owners. The first was the seemingly inevitable announcement that the Masters hardware chain would close its doors before the end of the...

Read More

Sydney restaurant fined for underpayments

7-Eleven shop owners aren’t the only employers short-changing staff and deliberately ignoring workers’ rights. A Malaysian restaurant in inner Sydney...

7-Eleven shop owners aren’t the only employers short-changing staff and deliberately ignoring workers’ rights. A Malaysian restaurant in inner Sydney was last week fined almost $300,000 for using false records to disguise wage underpayments. Six staff members at the Mamak restaurant, five of which were visa-holders, were paid as little as...

Read More

Anxious wait over for national retail Finalists

Innovative, resourceful, self-starting, and downright talented. These are the words used to describe the crop of incredible retailers who’ve...

Innovative, resourceful, self-starting, and downright talented. These are the words used to describe the crop of incredible retailers who’ve made it through to be named Finalists in the National Retail Association’s (NRA’s) 2016 Rewards for Excellence. The NRA has today revealed who’s in the running for the most prestigious Awards...

Read More

7- Eleven, wages and the Franchise Code: The story so far

A recent decision in the Federal Circuit Court is one of the latest episodes in the ongoing 7-Eleven wages...

A recent decision in the Federal Circuit Court is one of the latest episodes in the ongoing 7-Eleven wages saga. Federal Circuit Court Judge, Michael Jarrett, saw fit to impose the largest penalty ever ordered for an action brought by the Fair Work Ombudsman on the operator of 7-Eleven...

Read More

More 7-Eleven owners fined for underpayments

The Fair Work Ombudsman has taken legal action against another 7-Eleven franchisee for underpaying 12 employees. Couple Haiyao Xu...

The Fair Work Ombudsman has taken legal action against another 7-Eleven franchisee for underpaying 12 employees. Couple Haiyao Xu and Yiran Gu, who operated a 7-Eleven store in Parkville Melbourne, were found to have underpaid staff by over $84,000 while building up a near $3 million property portfolio. Judge Suzanne...

Read More

Think big small talk

The Office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has opened a consultation period to find out...

The Office of the Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman has opened a consultation period to find out from small businesses, family enterprises and representative associations what the key issues are when running a business, and what they should focus on as a business advocate. If you have some...

Read More

Franchises who flaunt employment law put on notice

Franchises have come under increased scrutiny as law firm Maurice Blackburn calls for tighter regulation and tougher laws to...

Franchises have come under increased scrutiny as law firm Maurice Blackburn calls for tighter regulation and tougher laws to force franchisors to account for franchisees that underpay workers. Maurice Blackburn Employment Principal, Josh Bornstein has said that regulators must do more to prevent “franchisors turning a blind eye to systematic...

Read More

Could you be NRA’s 2016 Franchisee of the Year?

Could you be National Retail Association’s 2016 Rewards for Excellence Franchisee of the Year? As a finalist or winner, franchisees...

Could you be National Retail Association’s 2016 Rewards for Excellence Franchisee of the Year? As a finalist or winner, franchisees can boost morale and increase engagement within their business. Gaining recognition as a leader in the industry sets your business apart from the crowd. Awards increase interest, trust and respect for...

Read More