Some changes to take effect shortly
The Senate and House of Representatives yesterday passed part of the Fair Work Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill 2023.
The changes bring in some of the reforms that have been widely publicised (and the subject of previous alerts by ABLA), with other reforms still to be debated into the New Year.
A summary of the reforms that have been passed appears below:
| Changes that have passed | Changes that will remain in the Bill |
|---|---|
| Small business redundancy exemption | Casual employment |
| Labour hire | Franchisees’ access to single-enterprise bargaining Transitioning from multi-EAs |
| Union delegate rights for employees | Model terms for EAs |
| Anti-discrimination measures | Union delegate rights for independent contractors |
| Criminalisation of underpayments | Sham arrangements |
| WHS measures pertaining to first responders | Right of entry |
| Civil penalties | |
| Compliance notices | |
| Withdrawals from amalgamations of registered organisations | |
| Definition of employment | |
| Employee-like | |
| Road transport | |
| The new bargaining arbitration provisions restricting FWC ability to arbitrate on merit in intractable bargaining disputes |
For a summary of each of the above changes, see our IR Reform series.
When do the changes take effect?
| Change | When it takes effect |
|---|---|
| Labour hire orders (general) | The day after Royal Assent |
| Labour hire orders (protected rate of pay, host obligations) | 1 November 2024 |
| Delegates rights for employees | The day after Royal Assent |
| Wage theft | The later of 1 January 2025 and the day the Minister prescribes the Voluntary Small Business Wage Compliance Code |
| Small business redundancy exemption | The day after Royal Assent |
| Anti-discrimination | The day after Royal Assent |
| Industrial manslaughter | 1 July 2024 |
| First responders WHS changes | Partly on the day after Royal Assent, partly 6 months later |
It is not yet known when the Bill will receive Royal Assent, but this is anticipated shortly.
As always, if you have any queries, please feel free to contact our team at info@ablawyers.com.au.
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