Running a business has always been a hard, but lately with ever changing employment laws, things can get even trickier.
If you own a business in WA, you should be aware of the changes happening right now.
Even the best administrative systems can’t protect you if your legal foundations are cracked. This is where having the right experts in your corner makes all the difference.
To make sure your contracts and policies are correct and enforceable, its important to consult with specialists like Rowe Bristol Lawyers, who understand the specific nuances of the Western Australian legal world.
Being fully informed about your employment laws is more important than ever as a Perth business owner.
The New Definition of Casual Employment
For years if you have a “casual” employee this meant you can write out what this means to your business.
So regardless of what commitment and hours your employee worked, generally if it was written down as caudal, the law would agree. This has changed significantly this year.
Now rather than what the contract says, the law cares about the actual “substance, practical implications, and real-world conduct” of the employment relationship.
Under the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024, a worker is only casual if there is no “firm advance commitment to ongoing work.”
So basically, if an employee may be legally considered as permanent if there is a mutual ongoing agreement of work or they have a regular pattern of work. Regardless if you’re paying them the 25% bonus.
Now there is a way for employees to change their status to permanent after six months of continuous work or twelve months for small businesses.
This changes your liabilities regarding paid leave and redundancy. If you haven’t reviewed your causal roster lately, it’s a good time to see if those casuals have become permanent in the eyes of the law.
The Right to Disconnect: A Culture Shift
Employees now have the legal right to ignore work related calls and emails outside their work hours.
But that doesn’t mean you cant contact your staff after 5pm. It just means they have the right to refuse to read or answer it, if that refusal is “reasonable”.
For many Perth businesses, especially those in service that deal with Eastern States clients and the time difference, this feels like a big hurdle. What counts as reasonable?
The law considers things like the employees seniority, their personal circumstances, and the level of disruption.
Instead of waiting for problems, or even disputes, to arise, the best approach is to set clear expectations with your staff now.
A good strategy would be to update their internal policies with what you consider an emergency contact rather than a “can wait until Monday” task.
It’s about being proactive rather than reactive.
Wage Theft and Compliance
The word theft is pretty intense, but the government is the one using it. New legislation has introduced criminal penalties for intentional wage underpayment.
While most Perth business owners aren’t trying to rip people off, accidental underpayment is a real problem. Whether you misinterpret an Award or there is just a glitch in your payroll, this creates massive risk.
In Western Australia, we deal with a dual system, some businesses fall under the national Fair Work system, while others, like sole traders and some partnerships, fall under the state system (WAIRC).
Knowing which system applies to your business is the first step. Step two is making sure your payroll software is mapped to the correct, updated Award rates.
If you’re feeling unsure about where you stand, it’s worth getting some professional legal advice, it can save you in the long run.
Having a commercial lawyer audit your contracts could be considered an investment, an investment towards avoiding a $100,000 fine.
Independent Contractors vs. Employees
The “gig economy” changes have trickled down to almost every industry. If you hire contractors to help with your deliveries, your digital marketing, or your maintenance, the lines have blurred. Similar to the casual employment changes, the law now looks at the “totality of the relationship.”
Does the person have a say in how they do the work? Do they provide their own tools? Can they delegate the task to someone else?
If the answer is “no” to most of these, the Fair Work Commission might decide they are actually an employee. This triggers a landslide of obligations: superannuation, workers’ compensation, and leave entitlements.
We’ve seen businesses get hit hard by back-pay claims because they thought they were hiring a “contractor” who was, in reality, a full-time staff member in a different shirt.
Fixed-Term Contracts Have a Sunset Clause
If you use fixed-term back to back contracts to trial staff or keep your options open, you need to stop. There are now strict limits on using fixed-term contracts for the same role for more than two years.
Of course there are exemptions, for specialised projects or seasonal work but for average Perth businesses, the two year cap is firm in place.
If you breach this, the end date in the contract becomes legally unenforceable, and the employee is considered permanent.
Why Localization Matters for Perth Businesses
Western Australia has its own unique Industrial Relations (IR) environment. The state’s economy, driven by resources and a high concentration of small-to-medium enterprises, means our workforce dynamics are different.
When a business owner is stressed about a potential Fair Work claim, they aren’t focusing on growth. They aren’t focusing on their customers. They are stuck trying to figure out compliance.
This is why a team approach often works best. You need your PA or head of administration to keep track of systems but you also need a legal professional to sign off on the areas that could cost your business.
Choose a firm that knows the local court systems, the local arbitrators, and the local challenges.
Employment law in WA is definitely getting more complex, but it’s manageable if you don’t ignore it.