News
Primary Employers Tasmania proactively shares relevant links and stories, as well as upcoming events and opportunities. To access our regular newsletters and other important communication, please join as a member.
Newsletters
Primary Employers Tasmania publishes its Strive newsletter three times a year to inform, inspire and encourage innovation and best practice in Tasmania’s agricultural industries. Printed copies are posted to every member of the organisation.
Please enjoy the most recent editions of this newsletter, which are proudly sponsored by Safe Farming Tasmania, Frost Batten Accountants, Telstra, Elders, Rural Bank, Bendigo Bank and Bok Print.
Click on the newsletter editions below to read the full versions online.
Election
Two Primary Employers Tasmania and Tasmanian Pork Industry $5000 scholarships available each year.
Tasmanians passionate about agriculture are encouraged to apply for a $5,000 Agri-Development Scholarship, which can be utilised to attend a conference or event, participate in training, facilitate the attendance of a guest speaker at a primary industries function in Tasmania or organise an agricultural event in the State. There are two $5,000 scholarships available each year, closing on 31 October and 31 March. The next scholarship is open until 5pm on 31 March 2024. Apply now….
Congratulations to the inaugural winner Penny Hooper, Livestock Manager at the Vaucluse Agricultural Company. A media release regarding Penny’s successful application can be found below.
Since then several Scholarships have been awarded. The Tasmanian Agricultural Productivity Group (TAPG) used the second scholarship to bring renowned speaker Michael McQueen to Tasmania to talk about the New Now — how technology is driving development and the challenges and opportunities associated with employing Generation Z.
The Tasmanian Agriculture Education Network (TAEN) were another recipient of the Scholarship. Three TAEN members joined over 100 other delegates to attend the "Creators and Innovators" 2023 National Association of Agricultural Educators (NAAE) Conference in Toowoomba in early January.
The scholarship will also allow other TAEN members to attend the 2023 PIEFA Conference in Canberra highlighting the "Growing the NextGen of Food and Fibre Education" in May.
This sharing of experiences with agriculture teachers across Australia will benefit classroom teaching and thus our future farmers.
Alex Ferguson from Landfall Angus was the first winner in 2023 and will be using her scholarship to attend the Rabobank Farm Manager’s Program to improve her skills. The second scholarship in 2023 went to Joe Brady, whose story appears below.
Agri Development Scholarship Media Release
Agri Development Scholarship Application Form - Events and Education
Agri Development Scholarship Application Form - Guest Speakers and Functions
Scholarship Winner
CONGRATULATIONS JOE BRADY!
Our latest scholarship winner is Joe Brady from Springland Ag Contracting. Originally from New Zealand Joe has resided in Cressy for the past four and a half years. Joe’s passion for agriculture grew when he left high school and pursued a Bachelor’s degree at Lincoln University. Throughout my time at Lincoln University, I spent all of my holidays working on farms including dairy, high country grazing, sheep and beef finishing blocks and a mixed cropping farm in Victoria.
Joe will be using his scholarship to attend the Marcus Oldham Rural Leadership Program which is an intensive five-day course looking at leadership skills, and issues facing rural communities and industry. Joe is looking to improve his management skills and thus have a positive impact on his entire work team.
APPLICATIONS OPEN FOR NEXT SCHOLARSHIP
Applications for the next scholarship of up to $5,000 will close on 31 March, 2024. Details are available from the Primary Employers Tasmania website.
Committee meeting with Tasmania’s Minister for Primary Industries and Water
The Committee was pleased to welcome Tasmania’s Minister for Primary Industries and Water, Jo Palmer and her adviser, Amanda Lovell to our February meeting where we were able to raise our concerns around housing on farms, workers compensation costs, and changes to the PALM Scheme.
In NSW, Victoria and to some extent Queensland, accommodation related to employment is excluded from the Residential Tenancy legislation. In Tasmania, if there is a charge for a person to live in accommodation, including an employee living in housing provided by the employer, it is claimed that they are tenants and therefore protected by the Residential Tenancy legislation. This legislation provides necessary protections, but also has minimum periods for the person to vacate the property. In an employment situation it is important that the accommodation be vacated in a reasonable timeframe when the employment is over to make the accommodation available for the next employee. Too often we are hearing that unless accommodation is available a prospective employee is not interested in the job. Minister Palmer understands our concerns and agrees with our request to exempt farmhouses from the legislation.
Concerns were also raised in relation to the increasing workers compensation premiums. Some agriculture employers are paying 20% premiums on their workers compensation insurance despite auditors stating that a premium of 8% to 9% would still provide a profit to insurance companies.
Primary Employers Tasmania will continue to pursue these policies for the benefit of our members.
Survey Results
Thank you to all those members who completed our recent survey.
The survey highlighted the problems of attracting staff, and the costs of employment, particularly the high workers compensation premiums.
Many members highlighted the problems they have when staff are on board but not performing as they should. With a tight labour market, they cannot afford to lose staff but are frustrated trying to get the best performance from those they have.
The proposed and actual changes to the Fair Work Act are also causing concerns. The most recent changes are to parental leave, labour hire and fixed term contracts. Labour hire employees will need to receive the same rate of pay and benefits as the host’s permanent workers. Some confusion exists as to whether that means bonuses and share allotments.
Changes to the fixed term contract provisions means that an employee cannot be on a fixed term contract for more than two years, whether through one or more contracts. Once the fixed term of two years is over the employee will become permanent, or the employment must end. We will be keeping members informed through the newsletter or Strive as the changes occur.
If a member has any questions about the legislation or other matters of concern with the performance of their staff they can ring Andrew on 0407 200 909.
The Committee is now taking on board the feedback to ensure that member’s concerns and challenges are addressed.
The winner of the $100 berry package kindly donated by Tasmanian Berries is Robbie Tole from Cressy.
Media Releases
Below are links to various media releases from Primary Employers Tasmania.
21 December 2021
12 November 2021
17 August 2021
27 July 2021
29 March 2021
22 January 2021
15 October 2020
7 September 2020
10 March 2020
31 October 2019
2 July 2020
7 August 2020
11 October 2019
Wage Schedules
New wage schedules are available to financial members of Primary Employers Tasmania in the Members-Only area.
The wage rates are operative from the first full pay on or after the 1st July* each year and a copy of new wage schedules are also sent via post to Members. If you have not received your schedules in the first week of July, please download a copy from the Members-Only area or contact Lindie at the office via email lindie@primaryemployers.com.au
Casual Employees and Overtime
We often get asked about the payment of overtime for casual employees. Many employers are overpaying their casuals when they do overtime as the employer is multiplying the casual rate of pay by the penalty rate and thus paying a penalty rate on the casual loading.
When calculating the overtime it is a matter of using the base classification rate, that is, the hourly rate for a permanent employee, multiplying that by the relevant penalty rate, then adding the flat casual loading.
For example, the base rate for a Level 1 permanent employee under both the Horticulture Award and the Pastoral Award is $22.61 per hour. A casual is paid $28.26 per hour which includes the loading of $5.65 per hour.
Therefore, if the employee is entitled to time and one-half for overtime, the casual employee will be paid,
($22.61 x 1.5) + $5.65 = $33.92 + $5.65 = $39.57 per hour
Some employers are incorrectly paying $42.39 per hour, costing the employer an additional, and unnecessary, $2.82 each hour.
Glyphosate Fact Sheet
Download Glyphosate facts brochure here
Shearer Wool Handler Trainer in Tasmania
Primary Employers Tasmania (PET) is pleased to support Shearer Wool Handler Training throughout Tasmania provided through AWI.
For further details, please contact Locky West on 0400 865 631 or lachlan.west@wool.com.
Requesting Employees to work on Public Holidays
The High Court has confirmed that an employer can only request an employee to work on a public holiday, even if the employee has been rostered to so work. Therefore, if you do need someone to work on a public holidays you should follow the steps set out below:
Request the employee to work on the public holiday.
If the employee cannot work they should provide reasons.
Take into account the employee’s reasons and whether it is still reasonable to require the employee to actually work on the public holiday (see below).
Check the award and contract of employment. If the contract does require the employee to work this is relevant but not decisive.
Advise the employee of your decision.
When determining whether to accept or refuse the employee’s response, these are the factors that need to be considered:
The nature of the employer’s workplace or enterprise (including its operational requirements), and the nature of the work performed by the employee;
The employee’s personal circumstances, including family responsibilities;
Whether the employee could reasonably expect that the employer might request work on the public holiday. A positive obligation in a modern award, enterprise agreement or employment contract will be relevant but not decisive;
Whether the employee is entitled to receive overtime payments, penalty rates or other compensation for, or a level of remuneration that reflects an expectation of, work on the public holiday;
The relevant public holidays that are coming soon are:
Christmas Day – Monday 25 December
Boxing Day – Tuesday 26 December
New Year’s Day – Monday 1 January
Australia Day – Friday 26 January
Unlawful Behaviour
Amendments to the Sex Discrimination Act now impose a positive duty on employers to take “reasonable and proportionate measures” to eliminate sexual harassment and discrimination in the workplace and ensure a non-hostile working environment for employees.
The Australian Human Rights Commission has now set out the key standards that should be addressed by an employer. These can be summarised as
Leadership – employers are visible in their commitment to provide a safe workplace;
Culture – staff are empowered to report unlawful conduct;
Knowledge – an appropriate policy is in place and communicated to staff;
Risk management – a risk-based approach is taken for prevention and response;
Support – employees who experience or witness inappropriate behaviour are supported;
Reporting – Employees know how to report unlawful conduct and managers know how to respond;
Monitoring and evaluation – data is collected and used to assess and improve the workplace.
Primary Employers Tasmania can assist in implementing these key steps by providing policies and training to ensure best practice.
A complaint by an employee can be lodged with the Fair Work Commission, the Human Rights Commission, WorkSafe Tasmania or Equal Opportunity Tasmania. As an employer, if you have taken the necessary steps to protect your staff you could be liable for penalties if the matter ends up in a tribunal.
It should be noted that sexual harassment in the workplace is now regarded as serious misconduct leading to the termination of employment of perpetrators. Again, Primary Employers Tasmania can assist in this area
Standing Down Employees
With peak harvesting period happening in some commodities there are often machinery breakdowns. We are often asked what happens in terms of keeping employees at work and what is paid to those employees who cannot work because of the breakdown.
The Fair Work Act provides that an employee can be stood down if there is;
A breakdown of machinery or equipment if the employer cannot reasonably be held responsible for the breakdown, or
A stoppage of work for any cause for which the employer cannot reasonably be held responsible (examples include such things as a lack of supply, a natural disaster)
Employers cannot stand an employee down just because the business is quiet or there isn't enough work.
Employers should consider all available options before making the decision to stand down their employees. For example, is there other work the employee could do until the machinery is fixed.
During a stand down, an employee does not have to be paid, but does accrue leave based upon their normal hours of work, and must be paid for any public holiday that occurs during the standdown.
You may agree that the employee can use their annual leave or even TOIL hours, but they cannot use paid sick leave or compassionate leave.
New IR Rules
At the end of 2023 the Government agreed to split their “Closing the Loopholes” legislation to allow uncontroversial provisions through and then allow further discussions and negotiations about the balance of the proposed legislation.
Items that could affect businesses this year include:
Casual conversion and casual employee definition: to look at the relationship as a whole including regularity and intentions. Casuals would gain a right to request conversion every six months. It may be that employees will have the right to stay as casual if they choose.
Contractor vs employee: aims to look at the 'real substance, practical reality and true nature of the relationship' rather than the written contract in place.
Same job, same pay for labour hire workers: This would require labour hire workers to be paid no less than if the employees were working for the host employer.
Regulation of 'employee-like' workers: new regulation for workers in the gig economy and road transport industry.
Increased protections and rights for union delegates: including workplace delegates paid time to attend training, and reasonable time and facilities at the workplace to communicate with employees who are current or prospective union members.
Sham contracting: restricts the defence available to employers who misrepresent employment as an independent contracting arrangement.
Wage theft: introduces a new criminal offence for wage theft that targets intentional underpayment of employees. Related offences could implicate employees, officers and agents of employers.
Increases to civil penalties: increases maximum civil penalties relating to underpayments or employee entitlements and amends the meaning of a 'serious contravention'. Penalties have increased at least five times and sometimes ten times the current penalties for contraventions of the Act.
WHS amendments: including the introduction of industrial manslaughter provisions, increasing maximum penalties. The proposed amendments also focus on silica related diseases and provide easier access to workers compensation for first responders suffering from PTSD.
Discrimination protections – family and domestic violence: proposes stronger discrimination protections against adverse action for employees who are subjected to family and domestic violence.
Small business redundancy exemption: the small business exemption will be amended to capture large businesses who would otherwise qualify due to preliminary downsizing before closing the business.
We will keep members advised as the changes are legislated and help you navigate through the process.
Award Changes
The Fair Work Commission has started proceedings to change the 12-month period of time for an inexperienced employee to stay at the Level 1 classification. This includes the Pastoral Award, the Horticulture Award, and the Wine Industry Award.
The Commission has stated that they believe a 6-month period is suitable, and the Union wants 3 months before progression to the next level.
We have been working with the National Farmers Federation (NFF) in relation to this and provided a statement to accompany statements from other States and commodities regarding the need for a 12-month period before a worker progresses to a higher level.
We will advise members if a change is made.
Awards Updates
The Commission has sought to clarify the age provisions for wages under the various awards to simplify the interpretation. Rather than saying “16 years of age or under” or “17 years or under” the awards will now state “under 17 years of age” and “under 18 years of age”. This therefore covers all employees under the stated age.
The affected awards are as follows:
“Under 16 years of age” now applies to the
General Retail Industry Award 2020
Fast Food Industry Award 2020
“Under 17 years of age” now applies to the
Restaurant Industry Award, 2020
Poultry Processing Award, 2020,
Vehicle Repair, Services and Retail Award 2020
“Under 18 years of age” now applies to the
Manufacturing and Associated Industries and Occupations Award 2020
Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020.
Wool Storage, Sampling and Testing Award 2020.
Annualised Salaries and Flat Rates of Pay
Sometimes it is easier to agree upon an annualised salary or a flat rate of pay for an employee rather than working out weekly hours and overtime which can vary from week to week.
However, there are a couple of legal requirements in having either of these arrangements in place.
Firstly, if you are looking to have an annualised salary then you must provide a comparison to the award so that the employee can see whether they are better off or not. Secondly, if there is expected overtime then it must set out how much overtime is covered by the salary, and what happens if the employee works more than those expected overtime hours. Thirdly, you must set out what else the salary covers, be it allowances, annual leave loading etc. And finally, it must all be in writing.
Similarly, if you are looking to have a flat rate of pay for all hours worked, that is an over-award payment, you must ensure that it covers what would have been paid pursuant to the award when the employee works overtime, and again, clearly set out what is covered by the flat rate, be it just overtime, or does it also include allowances, annual leave loading, etc.
If it isn’t stated that the over-award payment covers these items they are still payable in addition to the flat rate of pay.
With both of these pay arrangements, as it is with all employees, it is essential that a record of hours is kept so that you can prove that the annualised salary or flat rate of pay, covers what the employee would have been paid if they had been employed purely under the award. With an annualised salary a 12 monthly check is required under the award.
Primary Employers Tasmania can assist in preparing the necessary documents and has spreadsheets that can quickly check the proposed salary against award requirements.
Is your Manager a Manager?
Generally speaking, managers are responsible for the productivity of others, whereas non-managerial employees are only responsible for themselves.
A manager is an employee who has duties and responsibilities not covered by the award classification descriptors. These will include such duties as supervising and deploying staff, rostering, assisting with and responsibility for budgets, planning, purchasing and determining stock levels, preparing reports, and having decision-making authority. Just calling an employee a manager will not pass muster if you are audited and could end up costing the employer.
Managers are not covered by the Awards but are still covered by the National Employment Standards which cover leave entitlements, notice of termination, and public holidays.
As there is no award coverage what a manager is paid is up to negotiation between the employer and manager, as well as agreeing on the other terms and conditions of employment.
It is important to note that a manager is not entitled to annual leave loading, overtime, or penalty rates as these are award conditions that only apply to employees covered by the particular award.
It is best to have a specific management contract written for your managers to ensure that you are protected from misunderstandings and costly litigation. Primary Employers Tasmania can assist with this.
Christmas Conduct Procedure
To view and download our Christmas Conduct procedures, access the link HERE
Best Practice
As an employer, you are required to keep certain records and provide appropriate documents and information to your employees.
In regard to record keeping, you need to keep a written record of the employee’s start date, whether full-time or part-time, whether permanent, temporary or casual, and obviously their name and tax file number details. You must also retain records of their hours of work (timesheets are essential), wages records, including appropriate piecework records if applicable, and details of all leave taken. When an employee leaves your employment, you must record the reason for leaving.
The documents you are required to provide an employee include a payslip for each pay period (containing all the relevant information), the Fair Work Information Statement, Casual Employment Information Statement (if your employee is a casual), a copy of their contract of employment, and a copy of any other written agreement that is made with an individual employee.
Primary Employers Tasmania can assist in ensuring your record keeping is correct.
Keep Farmers Farming
Australia currently faces a shortfall of over 172,000 workers across the food supply chain.
This crisis in our workforce is reducing the amount of food we grow and process here in Australia, with farmers choosing not to plant crops, and processors unable to keep up with demand.
Like every advanced economy, Australia relies on visiting workers to meet these gaps.
However, the government is slashing visa pathways for people to live and work in regional Australia.
At the same time, they’re proposing complex new workplace laws – making it harder for small family businesses to put on workers.
We need purpose-built solutions to address the farm workforce crisis, and provide farmers with the help they need to put food on the shelves.
We’re calling for two essential changes:
A dedicated visa pathway for agricultural workers.
A rethink of the IR reform agenda to avoid additional cost and complexity.
Contact our local MP to voice your concerns to ensure farmers can keep farming
Payslips
In our last newsletter we indicated the importance of issuing payslips to all employees. These can be provided in hardcopy (paper) or electronically. However, it is also important to provide the correct information on the payslip. Each payslip must contain the following details:
Employer’s and employee’s name
Employer’s Australian Business Number (if applicable)
Pay period, that is period for which the payment is made
Date of payment
Gross and net pay
If the employee is paid an hourly rate:
The ordinary hourly rate
The number of hours worked at that rate
The total dollar amount of pay at that rate
Any loadings (including casual loading), allowances, bonuses, incentive-based payments, penalty rates or other paid entitlements
The pay rate that applied on the last day of employment
Details of any deductions from the employee's pay
Details, including fund details of any superannuation contributions
It isn’t necessary to put leave accruals on a payslip
Though you should show on the payslip if annual leave or personal leave is taken, there are restrictions on showing family and/or domestic violence leave on a payslip. This is so that others cannot gain access to the payslip are not able to see such provision.
Employers need to keep a record of leave balances and any leave taken by employees. However, pay slips must not mention paid family and domestic violence leave, including any such leave taken and leave balances.
Any amount paid to an employee for taking paid family and domestic violence leave has to be recorded on a pay slip as:
Ordinary hours of work, or
Another kind of payment for performing work, such as an allowance, bonus or overtime payment.
However, if an employee requests it, their employer can record time taken as paid family and domestic violence leave as another type of leave on their pay slip (for example, annual leave). Note, that this must be at the employee’s request.
Closing the Loop - IR Law Changes
Part 2 of the Closing the Loop legislation passed the Federal Parliament last week with changes to casual employment, independent contractors, and the ‘right to disconnect’ hitting the headlines. These amendments will be introduced in the next few months and are not yet operational.
So what will the changes mean for farmers.
The High Court had recently ruled that what the contract stated determined whether an employee was a casual or permanent employee. Similarly, it stated that the contract was paramount in stating whether a worker was an employee or contractor. The changes to the legislation now looks at the conduct of the employer/employee after the contact has been entered into – not just the terms of the contract itself.
Similar changes have been made to the employee v contractor test, where the post-contract conduct is to be considered, not just the terms of the contract.
For large businesses, that is an employer with 15 or more employees, the casual conversion process will now become available after 6 months, compared to the previous 12-month period. For small businesses, employees can choose to convert to permanent employment after 12 months. There is now a need to provide the Casual Employee Information Statement at commencement of employment and each 12 months of employment to remind casual employees of their rights.
The introduction of the Right to Disconnect doesn’t mean that the employer cannot contact an employee after hours, but does mean that the employee has the right to ask the employer not to contact them unreasonably, and that the employer cannot penalise the employee for doing so.
It is important to note that the right to refuse contact (or to refuse to monitor for contact) is only where the contact is unreasonable. In other words, an employer will still be able to require an employee to be contactable where this requirement is reasonable.
More detail on these changes will be provided when they are closer to their effective dates, but if anyone has a question please contact Andrew Cameron on 0407 200 909.
Parental Leave
Newsletter 4th March, 2024
Changes to the National Employment Standard last year now provide additional leave entitlements to new parents.
An employee is entitled to unpaid parental leave associated with the birth of a child if:
The child is a child of the employee, or of the employee’s spouse or de facto partner;
The employee has or will have the responsibility for the care of a child;
The employee provides the relevant notice and documentation; and
The employee has (or will have) completed at least 12 months’ continuous service.
The employee can have 12 months unpaid leave plus a further period of up to 12 months if employer agrees.
This leave can be taken any time during the 24-month period following the birth of the child or the placement of an adopted child, and, in the case of a pregnant employee, in the 6-week period before the expected birth or placement date. This is the case regardless of how much leave their spouse or partner takes.
Each partner can take up to a total of 24 months.
The unpaid parental leave entitlement includes both:
Continuous unpaid parental leave, i.e. continuous unpaid parental leave is a period of unbroken leave; and
Flexible unpaid parental leave – up to 100 days, which can be taken in blocks of single days of leave or more, before and after a period of continuous unpaid parental leave.
The total of these leave periods cannot exceed 12 months, or 24 months if approved.
An employee must give 10 weeks’ notice of the expected date of confinement, with some evidence of the expected date from a doctor.
The employer can refuse a requested extension on reasonable business grounds. This might be because:
The extension requested is too costly;
There is no capacity to change the working arrangements of other employees to accommodate the extension requested;
It would be impractical to change the working arrangements of other employees, or recruit new employees, to accommodate the extension requested;
The extension requested would be likely to result in a significant loss in efficiency or productivity; or
The extension requested would be likely to have a significant negative impact on customer service.
Your specific circumstances, including your size and the nature of your business are relevant to whether you have reasonable business grounds to refuse a request.
If you refuse a requested extension or fail to respond to a request in writing within 21 days, however, the employee can lodge a dispute notification which will be dealt with according to the award or through the Fair Work Commission.
It should be noted that a pregnant employee may be entitled to be transferred to an appropriate safe job for an interval before they start unpaid parental leave.
The father of the child cannot commence unpaid parental leave until the date of the birth, though may access carer’s leave if the pregnant mother requires care and support prior to the birth.
Wages Theft
The Federal government's recent Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill 2023 is proposing an increase in penalties for employers who underpay their staff and also making such underpayments a criminal offence, known as wage theft.
This change commences from 1 January, 2025, but in the meantime, you should be aware that current penalties exist if you do not pay an employee the correct entitlements. This is not only wages but such provisions as not paying leave entitlements or termination entitlements in accordance with relevant workplace laws.
In a recent case the Court held that by failing to pay the annual leave entitlements, the employer and its director contravened four distinct provisions of the Fair Work Act 2009 regarding the payment of annual leave, annual leave loading, and superannuation.
With the Federal government's recent Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes) Bill 2023 proposing a fivefold increase in civil penalties for underpayment offences under the FW Act and introducing a national criminal wage theft offence, this decision is a timely reminder to employers, directors and managers of the importance of ensuring compliance with workplace laws.
To reduce the risk of an underpayment claim, employers should:
Ensure the correct award and classification;
Keep accurate time and wage records;
Ensure employee entitlements on termination are paid properly and within the specific timeframes;
Obtain advice as soon as possible if they identify an underpayment or potential underpayment; and
Be aware that relevant managers and directors can be held personally liable and made to personally pay compensation and/or civil penalties.
If you have any questions as to what you need to pay your employees Primary Employers Tasmania can assist.
Cashing out Annual Leave
Newsletter 4th March, 2024
Often an employer is asked to cash out annual leave, usually when an employee is short of money or has a bill to pay.
The modern awards allow for an employee to cash out annual leave but certain conditions must be met;
The agreement to cash out annual leave must be put in writing and signed by both the employee and the employer and set out;
The amount of leave to be cashed out and the payment to be made to the employee, and
The date on which the payment will be made.
If the employee is under 18 years of age it must also be signed by a parent or guardian.
The maximum that can be cashed out is 2 weeks in any 12 month period.
After the cashing out the employee must still have available at least 4 weeks of annual leave.
A separate written agreement is required on each occasion annual leave is cashed out.
Resignations
Newsletter 4th March, 2024
We often get the question about an employee who says they are quitting but doesn’t give a date as to when the resignation is effective.
So what should you do as an employer?
Firstly, you should consider whether the employee resigned in what they call “the heat of the moment”. That is, there was an incident or some sort of blow-up to which the employee said they were quitting, or otherwise indicated a place you could “stick your job”.
In such a situation you should give the employee the opportunity to cool down and ask them to confirm their resignation in writing. By doing this the employer can be assured that nothing bad can flow, particularly, the employee cannot successfully claim unfair dismissal.
Secondly, once you have a resignation, and it is always best to get it in writing, you should acknowledge and accept the resignation, also in writing. If the employee hasn’t given a timeframe you should ask the employee to do so, or, point out the notice requirement as set out under the award or the employee’s contract. That will give you the date upon which the employment relationship will end.
Depending upon the reasons for the resignation you should also consider whether it is wise to let the employee work out the notice period. If it is due to a simple change in circumstances and the employee is simply moving on, then allowing them to work out the notice period is fairly straight forward, and gives you an employee actually doing the job whilst you find a replacement.
On the other hand, if there is some form of animosity, or the reason for leaving causes you concern then you can pay out the notice period and announce to the employee that you intend to pay out the notice period and then ask them to leave the work site, premises etc. Therefore, there is no risk of any problems such as damage to equipment or stock, no opportunity to upset other workers or customers, and no opportunity for an ‘injury’ and an ongoing workers compensation claim. Paying out the notice is a form of cheap insurance.
The awards now provide that an employee has to give the same period of notice that the employer does based upon length of service. If the employee doesn’t give the proper notice then the employer is entitled to deduct one week’s wages from the final payment to the employee.
The end of an employment relationship can be tricky, whether the termination is by a resignation, a redundancy, or at the initiative of the employer. It is best to get advice as soon as possible. Our Workplace Relations Director, Andrew Cameron, can assist in dealing with the different circumstances.
2024 Tasmanian Election
Newsletter 19th March, 2024
Agriculture plays an important role in the Tasmanian economy, and Primary Employers Tasmania President, Stephanie Terry, joined TasFarmers President, Ian Sauer, and Sprout Tasmania’s Jen Robinson, on ABC Country Hour to discuss issues relevant to agriculture and the main parties’ election campaign policies.
Stephanie was able to highlight the ongoing problems surrounding farm accommodation including the restrictions of the Residential Tenancies legislation and difficulties of getting building approval for accommodation on farms, payroll tax, workers compensation costs, labour shortages and new restrictions with the PALM scheme.
This followed our direct communication with both the Minister and shadow Minister for Primary
Industries as to the priorities for agriculture.
Stephanie was also supportive of the priorities of TasFarmers and Sprout Tasmania around training, communication with the industry, red tape restraints, and land preservation.
Stealing Hours
Tough Times - Dealing with Employee Costs
Mainland Tasmania - Livestock Producers - Seasonal Conditions Scheme
Diversity in Agriculture Leadership Program
Personal Leave
Newsletter 19th March, 2024
An employee is expected to attend at the workplace and perform duties during their normal working hours, and provide timesheets to show those hours.
A number of cases have arisen where the employee puts down start and finish times that are not correct and overstate the actual time they were in the workplace or even working. Being paid for time that the employee was not at work constitutes stealing and fraudulent behaviour.
Stealing is set out as serious misconduct under the Fair Work Regulations and justifies summary dismissal. However, as with all terminations it is essential that the employer carries out the correct procedures including,
Meeting with the employee to set out the alleged misconduct,
Advising the employee in advance as to what is to be discussed,
Giving the employee the option of having a support person present), and
Giving the employee the opportunity to respond to the allegations.
It should be noted that that many employers lose an unfair dismissal claim not because there was not a valid reason for the termination, but because they failed to follow procedural fairness.
If you have any disciplinary matters with your employees, it is best to get advice before you conduct any meetings.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
The very dry summer, increased costs and low commodity prices are leading to many employers looking at their labour costs and how to minimise these costs.
Cutting back on overtime and minimising the use of casual labour is one way to reduce labour costs, but when looking at putting off casual staff an employer needs to be careful that these aren’t long term casuals with regular and systematic employment. If a casual has been regularly employed for more than 6 months, they do have a right to claim unfair dismissal.
If an employer is looking to reduce their permanent staff numbers, then such a termination of employment equates to a redundancy. The Awards all provide that before an employee’s position is made redundant that the employer must consult with the employee about the situation and allow the employee to have input into ways to avoid the redundancy.
There are a number of steps the employer must take to ensure that any redundancy is done correctly and thus avoid having the Fair Work Commission declaring that it was not a genuine redundancy and awarding compensation to the employee.
Not following the correct steps can lead to a time-consuming and costly appearance in the Fair Work Commission. Many unfair dismissal claims are successful for the employee not because there isn’t a legitimate reason to terminate, but because the employer hasn’t followed the correct steps.
Before making any employee’s position redundant, or before terminating any employee, it is best practice to get professional advice. Primary Employers Tasmania can give you the necessary advice and provide all the paperwork and documentation to ensure that correct procedures are followed and can also attend on farm to conduct the necessary termination of employment.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
Recognising that extended dry conditions are now impacting a large portion of the state, eligible primary production livestock businesses on mainland Tasmania can now apply for support under the Mainland Tasmania – Livestock Producers – Seasonal Conditions Scheme.
This scheme provides one-off payments of up to $5,000 to eligible farm businesses who can demonstrate that:
They have a primary production livestock business on mainland Tasmania that has been severely impacted by extended abnormally dry conditions.
Their farm business has experienced, or expects to experience, significant financial impact, causing some hardship, due to the extended dry conditions.
Applications for this scheme will close at 3pm on Friday, 10 May 2024 or when program funding is exhausted.
To view the program guidelines and to apply, visit the State Growth website
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
Applications are now open for the Diversity in Agriculture Leadership Program!
The program is once again seeking applications from women who are involved in agriculture and committed to becoming leaders in the industry. The program offers unique opportunities and experiences to expand networks and work with an industry leading mentor. Now in it’s seventh year, the program is supported by 31 agriculture-focussed organisations who have made a public commitment to making meaningful change towards gender equality. Women from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
Designed to support the NFF’s goal to double the number of women in agriculture’s leadership ranks and to make agriculture an inclusive industry for all by 2030, this program offers unique opportunities and new experiences for women who are looking to take their leadership to the next level.
· Attend a three-day leadership retreat in Canberra 25-27 June, 2024
· Be mentored by an established industry leader
· Develop personal and professional goals
· Engage with industry influencers
· Join an alumni network of peers across the country
Applications close on 19 April, 2024.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
The National Employment Standards sets out that employees are entitled to personal leave, which includes both sick leave and carer's leave.
Personal leave can be used when an employee is ill or injured (sick leave), or to provide care or support to a member of their immediate family or household who requires care or support because of illness, injury, or an unexpected emergency.
Full-time employees are entitled to 10 days of paid personal leave per year.
Part-time employees are entitled to a pro-rata amount based on the hours they work.
Casual employees are not entitled to sick leave.
All employees, including casual employees, can have up to 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave. Thus, an employee who does not have any personal leave available can use this provision.
Personal leave accrues progressively during a year of service according to the employee's ordinary hours of work and accumulates from year to year if not used. Therefore, after three years an employee could have up to 30 days of accrued personal leave.
Employers can request evidence (such as a medical certificate) to support the need for personal leave if they consider it reasonable to do so. However, this must be done according to any workplace policies in place and in a reasonable manner.
Employees must notify their employer as soon as possible if they are unable to attend work due to illness or injury and advise them of the expected duration of their absence. We recommend that this be a personal phone call, not an email or text message.
Personal leave is paid at the employee's base rate of pay for the ordinary hours they would have worked during the period of leave.
If an employee is sick during a period of annual leave the period of illness is taken to be personal leave, and does not reduce the employee’s annual leave entitlement.
It should be noted that attending a doctor’s appointment is not sick leave, it is like any other appointment an employee may have such as bank or lawyer.
Stealing Hours
Tough Times - Dealing with Employee Costs
Mainland Tasmania - Livestock Producers - Seasonal Conditions Scheme
Diversity in Agriculture Leadership Program
Personal Leave
Is your employee a safe driver?
Improve your Telecommunications
Rural Relief Fund
Newsletter 19th March, 2024
An employee is expected to attend at the workplace and perform duties during their normal working hours, and provide timesheets to show those hours.
A number of cases have arisen where the employee puts down start and finish times that are not correct and overstate the actual time they were in the workplace or even working. Being paid for time that the employee was not at work constitutes stealing and fraudulent behaviour.
Stealing is set out as serious misconduct under the Fair Work Regulations and justifies summary dismissal. However, as with all terminations it is essential that the employer carries out the correct procedures including,
Meeting with the employee to set out the alleged misconduct,
Advising the employee in advance as to what is to be discussed,
Giving the employee the option of having a support person present), and
Giving the employee the opportunity to respond to the allegations.
It should be noted that that many employers lose an unfair dismissal claim not because there was not a valid reason for the termination, but because they failed to follow procedural fairness.
If you have any disciplinary matters with your employees, it is best to get advice before you conduct any meetings.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
The very dry summer, increased costs and low commodity prices are leading to many employers looking at their labour costs and how to minimise these costs.
Cutting back on overtime and minimising the use of casual labour is one way to reduce labour costs, but when looking at putting off casual staff an employer needs to be careful that these aren’t long term casuals with regular and systematic employment. If a casual has been regularly employed for more than 6 months, they do have a right to claim unfair dismissal.
If an employer is looking to reduce their permanent staff numbers, then such a termination of employment equates to a redundancy. The Awards all provide that before an employee’s position is made redundant that the employer must consult with the employee about the situation and allow the employee to have input into ways to avoid the redundancy.
There are a number of steps the employer must take to ensure that any redundancy is done correctly and thus avoid having the Fair Work Commission declaring that it was not a genuine redundancy and awarding compensation to the employee.
Not following the correct steps can lead to a time-consuming and costly appearance in the Fair Work Commission. Many unfair dismissal claims are successful for the employee not because there isn’t a legitimate reason to terminate, but because the employer hasn’t followed the correct steps.
Before making any employee’s position redundant, or before terminating any employee, it is best practice to get professional advice. Primary Employers Tasmania can give you the necessary advice and provide all the paperwork and documentation to ensure that correct procedures are followed and can also attend on farm to conduct the necessary termination of employment.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
Recognising that extended dry conditions are now impacting a large portion of the state, eligible primary production livestock businesses on mainland Tasmania can now apply for support under the Mainland Tasmania – Livestock Producers – Seasonal Conditions Scheme.
This scheme provides one-off payments of up to $5,000 to eligible farm businesses who can demonstrate that:
They have a primary production livestock business on mainland Tasmania that has been severely impacted by extended abnormally dry conditions.
Their farm business has experienced, or expects to experience, significant financial impact, causing some hardship, due to the extended dry conditions.
Applications for this scheme will close at 3pm on Friday, 10 May 2024 or when program funding is exhausted.
To view the program guidelines and to apply, visit the State Growth website
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
Applications are now open for the Diversity in Agriculture Leadership Program!
The program is once again seeking applications from women who are involved in agriculture and committed to becoming leaders in the industry. The program offers unique opportunities and experiences to expand networks and work with an industry leading mentor. Now in it’s seventh year, the program is supported by 31 agriculture-focussed organisations who have made a public commitment to making meaningful change towards gender equality. Women from all backgrounds are encouraged to apply.
Designed to support the NFF’s goal to double the number of women in agriculture’s leadership ranks and to make agriculture an inclusive industry for all by 2030, this program offers unique opportunities and new experiences for women who are looking to take their leadership to the next level.
· Attend a three-day leadership retreat in Canberra 25-27 June, 2024
· Be mentored by an established industry leader
· Develop personal and professional goals
· Engage with industry influencers
· Join an alumni network of peers across the country
Applications close on 19 April, 2024.
Newsletter 9th April, 2024
The National Employment Standards sets out that employees are entitled to personal leave, which includes both sick leave and carer's leave.
Personal leave can be used when an employee is ill or injured (sick leave), or to provide care or support to a member of their immediate family or household who requires care or support because of illness, injury, or an unexpected emergency.
Full-time employees are entitled to 10 days of paid personal leave per year.
Part-time employees are entitled to a pro-rata amount based on the hours they work.
Casual employees are not entitled to sick leave.
All employees, including casual employees, can have up to 2 days of unpaid carer’s leave. Thus, an employee who does not have any personal leave available can use this provision.
Personal leave accrues progressively during a year of service according to the employee's ordinary hours of work and accumulates from year to year if not used. Therefore, after three years an employee could have up to 30 days of accrued personal leave.
Employers can request evidence (such as a medical certificate) to support the need for personal leave if they consider it reasonable to do so. However, this must be done according to any workplace policies in place and in a reasonable manner.
Employees must notify their employer as soon as possible if they are unable to attend work due to illness or injury and advise them of the expected duration of their absence. We recommend that this be a personal phone call, not an email or text message.
Personal leave is paid at the employee's base rate of pay for the ordinary hours they would have worked during the period of leave.
If an employee is sick during a period of annual leave the period of illness is taken to be personal leave, and does not reduce the employee’s annual leave entitlement.
It should be noted that attending a doctor’s appointment is not sick leave, it is like any other appointment an employee may have such as bank or lawyer.
Newsletter 23rd April, 2024
There are often times you need an employee to travel for work related purposes. This may be to collect parts or equipment. Perhaps driving a truck to deliver product is the employee’s regular job. So what control does an employer have to ensure that the employee is working safely when driving on the employer’s behalf?
The Fair Work Commission recently found that an employer did not unfairly dismiss a worker who regularly and deliberately set their cruise control above the speed limit. This case highlights that employers can legitimately monitor and enforce WH&S compliance with regard to work related driving through their own risk management systems, such as on-board monitoring, and not have to rely on actual external proof (e.g. speeding tickets) or safety incidents.
Given the risks associated with driving there are clear and obvious reasons why such monitoring and enforcement should take place to meet the employer’s primary WHS duty.
The important point is that employers can legitimately monitor work related travel to meet genuine WH&S needs. However, it is also important to note that staff should be trained in relation to all WH&S matters. Having and reinforcing your policies with practical guidance and training is essential.
Newsletter 23rd April, 2024
If you are living or working in regional, rural or remote Australia and have a question or concern with your phone or internet connectivity, you can find free and independent advice, information and resources in one convenient place, the Regional Tech Hub.
The Regional Tech Hub offers personalised one-on-one support. It also provides resources and troubleshooting guides to help you learn more about mobile, internet and technology options that could suit your farm.
This is a resource provided through the National Farmers Federation. More details can be found at www.regionaltechhub.org.au
Having reliable mobile services with extended coverage is so important in agriculture. We often hear from members who are frustrated that they cannot contact staff when they are working away from the homestead, or the calls keep dropping out. There is also a significant health and safety risk to employees if they are working alone and are injured and they cannot get the help required as their mobile phone is out of range.
Newsletter 23rd April, 2024
Rural and regional farming businesses who are experiencing economic hardship due to disasters such as flood, fire and drought may apply for emergency financial assistance through the Rural Relief Fund.
Supported by the Tasmanian Government through the Department of State Growth, the Rural Relief Fund offers grants of up to $2,500 based on urgency and the level of support required.
Family and animal welfare is taken into account and funds can be used to cover costs ranging from basic household goods to the repair of damaged fences.
For more information and to apply visit the Rural Business Tasmania website or call Rural Business Tasmania on 1300 88 3276.