There’s no doubt that businesses are facing a continued and very heated compliance environment. What heightens this is the Government’s recent proposal to increase the Commonwealth criminal penalty unit from $180 to $210 as of 1 July 2017 and the anticipation that more increases will come! Once the proposal receives royal assent, the possible penalties … Read more
Start-ups and entrepreneurial businesses in Australia are faced with a gamut of legal requirements with which they must comply. This can be daunting for a new business that started with a brilliant idea on a shoestring budget. As a business gains momentum with increased sales and product range and general busyness, less attention is often … Read more
The Fair Work Ombudsman has been threatening for a while that advisors will be in the line of fire. Well, the time has arrived! A recent decision in the Federal Circuit Court of Australia (Fair Work Ombudsman v Blue Impression Pty Ltd & Ors [2017] FCCA 810]) provides a warning to payroll service providers that … Read more
The long awaited onboarding of the WHS model legislation in Western Australia may be closer to reality with the new Western Australian Labor Government in power. Major developments proposed to WHS laws in WA as set out in the WA Labor 2015 state platform include: a maximum jail term of 20 years for senior officers … Read more
By Michael Cochrane & Jack Stuk ATO disallows overtime meal deduction and imposes penalties (Kael v ATO) Mr Kael (K) claimed as tax deductions, overtime meal expenses for two (2) years during which K worked on building sites during the day, with paperwork performed at night and site inspections on weekends as overtime. Each year … Read more
On 14 December 2016, the highest safety fine for a single OHS offence in Victoria was delivered to Toll Transport in the County Court of Victoria. It involved Toll’s shipping service at Webb Dock in Port Melbourne. Background In 2014, a Toll stevedore was run over by a flat trailer and died. A flat trailer … Read more
By Clea Cole (Lawyer) and Claire Brown (Senior Associate) A truck driver has won back his job after being dismissed for misconduct which included making lewd, crude, sexist and Islamophobic comments – here is the decision in Goodall v Mt Arthur Coal Pty Ltd T/A Mt Arthur Coal [2016] FWC 4129. What happened? Goodall was … Read more
The NSW Supreme Court has again re-affirmed that gardening leave periods will be considered in assessing the overall reasonableness of post-employment restraints. In DP World Sydney Ltd v Guy [2016] NSWSC 1072, Justice White held that a restraint period of 3 months, which followed an earlier gardening leave period of 3 months was valid and … Read more
A recent Fair Work Commission (FWC) case has served as a reminder of what employers should not do when they are concerned that an employee can’t fulfil the inherent requirements of their job. Background In Rodney Billett v West Coast Council [2016] FWC 4252, 51 year old Rodney Billet, who had a largely unblemished employment … Read more
