For any employer, escalating legislation & increasingly frequent claims makes operating in today's environment much more challenging - the risks have soared. Protecting your businesses exposure is all about managing the risks by managing the processes before the event happens. That is where we can assist!

Agnew D'Arcy Legal are a boutique law firm offering employers advice relating to all areas of workplace law, including employment law, industrial relations and immigration law, focused pre dominantly in the hospitality & retail industry where numbers of employees number greater than in any other industry! The Workplace Law services that we offer are listed to the side.

Please click on the following links for further information about:

WorkChoices information page.

WORKPLACE AGREEMENTS

Collective Agreements (EBA's)

EMPLOYMENT RELATED DOCUMENTATION

Service, Consultancy & Management Agreements
Employment Contracts
Employment Benefits
Workplace Codes of Conduct

REDUNDANCIES & DISMISSALS

Redundancies
Unlawful dismissal

DISCRIMINATION & SEXUAL HARRASSMENT

Discrimination
Sexual Harrassment

What is a Workplace Agreement ?

Employers today are finding that awards are complicated documents built over years of amendments that don’t make any sense to the operational concerns of their business. Workplaces can be subject to the control of many awards that leaves different groups of people operating under different rules. Employers and the Federal Government have recognized the need to have one agreement that covers an entire organisation, and allows the philosophies of the organisation to be incorporated into the workplace agreement.

In the federal workplace relations system employers and employees can decide on their own wages and conditions of employment by making a workplace agreement. These agreements can replace all or part of awards with conditions tailored to the specific needs of the workplace. Employers and Employees today can enter into wage arrangements without the need for Union involvement and establish conditions of employment that are more reflective of their operations rather than the industries as a whole.

Benefits of a Workplace Agreement

• Labour Forecasting
• Simplified Classification of Employees
• A Single Industrial Instrument for your Organisation
• Non-Union Workplace
• Reduced Indirect Wage Liability
• Increase Employee Productivity
• Reduced Staff Turnover & Training Costs
• Competitive Advantage due to increased flexibility

What are the types of workplace agreements?

• Employee Collective Agreement
• Union Collective Agreement
• Employer Greensfields Agreement
• Union Greenfields Agreement
• Australian Workplace Agreement

How does a Workplace Agreement operate?

A collective agreement (or colloquially called an “enterprise agreement”) is just like the AWARD, it will apply to existing and future Employees of your organisation. No agreement is needed for future Employees as once your existing staff approve the agreement by a valid majority (50% plus 1 of those Employees who voted) and it is then approved by the Workplace Authority all future Employees are bound by the certified agreement.

A workplace agreement is made either with the Union or directly with your Employees. Should you choose to make a workplace agreement with your Employees, then you are only required to speak to the Union about the agreement if an Employee requests you to.

A workplace agreement will have a nominal period of 5 years but will continue to operate lawfully after the nominal period should the agreement not be terminated or replaced by another agreement. It is at your discretion as to whether wage increases continue to occur after this period.

Once a work agreement is negotiated or finalised then for it to be made legal by a 3 step process:

1) Provide all employees with the Workplace Authority Information Statement, the "How & When" document (i.e. notice of ballot, time and place) and provide access to a copy of the proposed Agreement at least 7 days before the ballot date.

2) Ballot of Employees - valid majority i.e. if 11 Employees vote out of 50 you must have at least 6 of those Employees voting for the enterprise agreement for it to be validly approved; and

3) Approval by the Workplace Authorithy– the Workplace Authority will only approve the workplace agreement if all the statutory requirements have been meet such as giving Employees access to a copy of the enterprise agreement, providing Employees at least 7 days notice of the ballot, and that the workplace agreement meets the “fairness test”.

Call Agnew D'Arcy today to discuss the implementation of an Enterprise Agreement today on 02 8354 1844, or click here to request more information.

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Agnew D'Arcy Legal can assist employers in the drafting of simple letters of engagement, through to the preparation of employment contracts.

In addition, we draft, where required, company policies and procedures documents covering areas such as occupational health & safety, sexual harrassment, drugs and alcohol as well as the resolution of workplace disputes and discipline.

These services are designed to ensure that you manage your risk by ensuring that you have complied fully with your obligations under the law.

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Unfair dismissal or termination proceedings can be both time consuming to a business and costly. A recent report of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission demonstrated that:

The answer to avoiding unfair dismissal proceedings is to ensure you have access to professional advice that knows your industry and you have the "basics" in place.

Agnew D'Arcy Legal provides day to day advice on performance and disciplinary matters. Depending on the complexity of the issue at hand and the immediate needs of the client, we are able to deliver this advice by phone, in person or writing.

Should a matter result in an unfair dismissal claim, we can assist by:

• Explaining you the process and the possible outcomes
• Drafting and filing all responses and statements in the relevant Tribunal
• Appearing on your behalf in the Tribunal at the conciliation or hearing stage
• Ensuring you have a competent defence to any unfair dismissal claim
• Ensuring a cost effective outcome
• Offering 'in-house' seminars for key managers on the law relating to unfair dismissal and a practical way to minimize unfair dismissal claims

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All workplaces should be aware that there is both Federal and State laws regulating discrimination or less favourable treatment of an employee, guest, customer, supplier, or contractor by another employee, guest, customer, supplier, or contractor. This type of litigation cannot only result in a severe damage to your pocket but also your business reputation.

The law in Australia makes businesses vicariously liable for the actions of their employees, guests, customers, suppliers, or contractors if they discriminate or sexual harass against another person. This means you may not even know if that the person has been discriminated or sexually harassed against an employee of yours and still be found liable for their actions or conduct.

To avoid issues of discrimination you need the basics such as:

Sexual Harassment/ Discrimination Policy

Quick and confidential treatment of any complaint

Continuous education of your managers and staff

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