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Reintroduction of common rule awards in Victoria |
As of 1 January 2005, 12 new awards will come into effect for employees who are employed in Victoria in positions such as:
- Clerical or administrative assistants;
- Catering staff;
- Employees who transport goods;
- Building staff; and
- Employees who sort and pack goods in warehouses.
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| There are another 174 awards which are to be examined by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) over the coming months. |
The introduction of Federal common rule awards provides all Victorian employees with access to a full Federal award safety net. At present, the only safety net for Victorian employees not covered by Federal awards or agreements was the limited range of minimum conditions contained in Schedule 1A of the Workplace Relations Act. |
It is therefore important, if you have employees in Victoria, for your business to make sure that they will comply with the new rules on 1 January 2005. |
- Minimum payments for wages;
- Overtime arrangements;
- Superannuation;
- Redundancy payments; and
- Leave loading etc.
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| To verify that your business and your employees will fit into the new common rule awards and to assess its financial viability, it is important that you should investigate this matter further by checking whether any of your employees will acquire new entitlements and rights from 1 January 2005. |
It is sometimes difficult to change an employee's working arrangements to meet the award expectations. The options include:
- Set-off agreements;
- Amending the employment contract (with the employee's consent);
- Making certified agreements with employees or the union; and
- Entering into Australian Workplace Agreements.
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peter.mcnamara@cml.com.au
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