Australia's employment sector is on the cusp of pivotal change, prompted by the enactment of the "Closing Loopholes" legislation. This transformation aims to enhance worker protection while ensuring fair and equitable employment practices. Let’s dive deeper into these legislative changes, and their implications for employees and employers.

Essential Updates from the "Closing Loopholes" Legislation

The legislation introduces several critical updates to workplace regulations, aimed at reinforcing employee rights and ensuring fair treatment for everyone:

• Right to Disconnect: Legislation has been passed that may give employees the ‘right to disconnect’ (in certain circumstances and unless the refusal is unreasonable), to ensure personal time remains undisturbed. Grievances regarding violations can be taken to the Fair Work Commission. This change is likely to come into effect in August 2024. A useful article is linked here.
  
  
• Gig Economy Protections: The Fair Work Commission will be empowered to set minimum standards for ‘employee-like’ workers who perform work through a digital labour platform. Eligible parties will be able to apply to the Fair Work Commission for minimum standards orders that are tailored for the work performed under them. The Fair Work Commission will have discretion to consider a range of terms that may be included in an order, such as payment terms, working time, record-keeping and insurance.
  
  
• Casual Conversion: Casual employees who work a regular pattern of hours’ have a clearer pathway to securing a permanent (full or part-time) role. In some circumstances, an employer must make a firm offer to a casual employee, and in other cases, a worker can make a request. A great summary is published by the FWC.
  
  
• Intractable Bargaining Resolution: In cases where bargaining negotiations stall, the Fair Work Commission can step in to arbitrate, ensuring that unions and employees can achieve fair wage increases even without direct agreements with employers.
  
  
• Road Transport Industry Standards: The Commission is able to set binding road transport minimum standards orders and non-binding road transport minimum standards guidelines for the road transport industry. Orders must be expressed to cover specified road transport businesses and contractors. A person covered by an order is obliged to comply with it. The proposed scope of matters that may be covered in an order or guideline includes terms dealing with payment terms, deductions, working time, record-keeping, insurance, consultation, representation, delegates' rights and/or cost recovery.
  
  
• Union Access and Fair Investigation: Amendments have been made to facilitate union officials' entry into workplaces for investigating issues such as wage underpayment, with measures in place to ensure that advance notice requirements do not impede effective investigations.