The National Retail Association (NRA) has launched the Foundation Skills for Retail Web Portal, providing free training and professional development resources for language, literacy and numeracy practitioners operating across the Australian retail industry. The portal has been produced by the NRA with the assistance of funding provided by the Australian Government through the Department of […]
IR Update: Employer’s decision to sack for serious misconduct based on “flimsy” evidence
We often receive calls from members who claim to have footage of employees engaged in misconduct. This case is a timely reminder that in order to rely on video footage it must be conclusive. It is simply not enough to have something on camera that is unclear. In Mulhall v Direct Freight (Qld) Pty Ltd […]
Why passive bullying is still bullying
Bullying is a serious issue. It dramatically raises stress levels for the person being bullied and is a major risk factor for developing mental health conditions. Unsurprisingly, beyondblue’s State of Workplace Mental Health in Australia study found 76 per cent of employees said depression and anxiety – the most common forms of mental health conditions […]
Amendments to Work Health and Safety Act 2011 come into effect
As part of its commitment to improving safety for Queenslanders at work, the Palaszcuk Government has introduced a number of changes to the State’s work health and safety (WHS) laws. Legislation that was recently passed to restore elements of the original Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Qld), which were altered following a review of […]
Beware of misleading ‘drip pricing’ practices
‘Drip pricing’ is a practice used by some retailers during online purchasing, where a headline price is advertised up-front, but other fees and charges are added throughout the purchasing process. Often the extra fees and charges are unavoidable or are applied in most transactions, making it difficult for consumers to compare offers. The Federal Court […]
SafeWork NSW – New video safety alert
In the last five years SafeWork NSW has investigated 21 incidents involving workers being injured whilst unpacking shipping containers. Three of these workers were killed. SafeWork NSW has just released a new video safety alert Unpacking shipping containers which is aimed at reducing serious injuries and fatalities in the workplace by demonstrating basic controls that […]
Give the gift of a mentally healthy workplace
As the holiday period approaches, some businesses are preparing for a well-earned break while others are looking ahead to one of their busiest periods of the year. Whether you’re winding down or cranking up, the coming weeks are an ideal time to thank employees for their efforts over the year, encourage everyone in the workplace […]
Tribunal allows discrimination claim to be heard three years after the act
The New South Wales Civil and Administrative Tribunal has allowed an ex-employee to proceed with a claim of discrimination, after documents were obtained with enough evidence for the complainant to make a case. According to the employee, who worked for the Salvation Army as a store supervisor, she was unfairlysuspended on the basis of her […]
Requesting employees to work on a public holiday
Given the public holidays that are fast approaching, members are reminded of the following matters arising out of section 114 of the Fair Work Act 2009 when requesting employees to work on a public holiday: 1. An employee is entitled to be absent from work on a day or a part-day that is a public […]
Mentally healthy workplaces rated highly by younger employees
Gen Y, millennials, the internet generation – whatever you call them, younger workers are the future of your business. And whatever you think of their values and motivations, they are career focused and know what they ideally want to attain. The problem lies in that they’re often not sure how to achieve this. […]
Get Healthy at Work
Get Healthy at Work is a free NSW Government service that aims to improve the health of working adults. The service focuses on: healthy weight physical activity healthy eating active travel smoking harmful alcohol use Get healthy at work assists with creating healthier working environments by: addressing individual behavioural and workplace factors contributing to poor […]