News and resources

It’s nine o’clock at night and you are relaxing at home watching a movie before heading to bed. Suddenly the phone rings. It’s the boss calling to discuss a meeting to be held tomorrow at work. You sigh – wishing you could disconnect from your work at this late hour – but you take the […]

Recently there has been a lot of publicity about new Commonwealth laws, taking effect toward the end of 2023, aimed at preventing and addressing sexual harassment in Australian workplaces. Recurring themes in this publicity are the stimulus for these laws, the Australian Human Rights Commission’s Respect@Work: Sexual Harassment National Inquiry Report (2020); and the phrase […]

In November 2023 changes to the law on unfair contract terms came into force, applying to a significantly expanded category of small business. Small business definition changes to include larger businesses The legal definition of a “small” business rose from one with fewer than 20 employees, or annual turnover up to $3 million, to a […]

Employers found liable for industrial manslaughter could face up to 20 years in jail under tough new negligence laws to come into operation in NSW in 2024. New industrial manslaughter laws following worksite deaths NSW Industrial Relations Minister Sophie Cotsis has said she will bring in new industrial manslaughter laws which will significantly increase penalties […]

We often add an emoji to our emails and text messages to bring a bit of levity to otherwise dull communications, but beware – icons such as the thumbs up, smiley face or gun could land you in trouble with the law. Legal impact of using emojis An emoji is an image used in texting […]

The recent unanimous High Court ruling declaring Qantas’s actions illegal in sacking nearly 1700 workers and outsourcing their roles is very significant, although possibly not for the reasons most people might think. Outsourcing as a strategy to avoid industrial action The judgment does not mean employers cannot reduce the size of their workforce by outsourcing […]

While Covid lockdowns are a thing of the past, many Australians have subsequently opted to not return to the office. The latest statistics show that on average, city workers spend one third of their work week at home, with many working from home full-time. Companies introduce mandatory office days This leaves offices largely deserted, but […]

Unfair contract terms can include non-disparagement clause Soon there will be 50 million reasons to be wary of the non-disparagement clause in contracts, as the federal government has increased penalties under Australian consumer law for breaching unfair contract terms. This can involve including a controversial non-disparagement clause in a contract, aimed at stopping people saying […]

The federal government is moving to protect foreign workers and new migrants who are at risk of exploitation by bringing in new laws making it a criminal offence to coerce a person into breaching their visa conditions. New laws to protect foreign workers Employers or agents who coerce migrants or foreign workers into breaching their […]

Tougher penalties for unfair contract terms and consumer law breaches Legislation has passed federal parliament to increase penalties for unfair contract terms and breaches of consumer law. Maximum penalties for breaches of consumer law increase from $10 million to $50 million. (Please see Speech on the Treasury Laws Amendment (More Competition, Better Prices) Bill 2022, […]

Weighing up the pros and cons of a case, discarding irrelevancies, assessing the likelihood of statements being the truth or a lie… it’s all in a day’s work for a judge in a court. But could computers replace judges, if programmed correctly? Could a computer weigh the evidence and decide whether the defendant is guilty […]

What is a zombie agreement? The term “zombie agreements” is used to describe ageing workplace agreements that will be declared deceased by the end of 2023. Fortunately, it doesn’t necessarily mean you will be pursued and devoured by the living dead when you turn up for work. Any workplace agreement that was made before the […]

Police and security services are making ever more use of facial recognition technology, which can identify individuals via CCTV by scanning an individual’s face and matching it to images held in a database. No dedicated laws in Australia for facial recognition technology Facial recognition technology (FRT) can be useful, but Australia does not have clear […]

Businesses have been warned by corporate and consumer watchdogs about “greenwashing” and told they will have to be ready to substantiate any environmental claims they make when marketing their goods and services, or face severe fines under consumer law. ACCC actively targeting businesses that are greenwashing The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission said it is […]

“Can I be legally sacked on probation? I thought I’d have to be caught stealing from the office, dodging work or really stuffing up an assignment, but no, I was fired for no reason at all. Is that legal?” Is it legal to be sacked on probation? The short answer is yes – you can […]

Often for tradies, an inescapable part of doing business – especially in the Sydney metropolitan area – is receiving fines for parking and related offences, and driving matters. However things are changing, and some tradies are learning the hard way about “full road-use recording of offences” – meaning, your business vehicle can have a criminal […]

France has done it. So have Italy, Ireland, Germany and Spain. Recently Belgium did it too. Now there are moves in Australia to do the same. We are talking about the right to disconnect from work after hours. Out-of-hours work contact increased during pandemic The phenomenon of employers contacting employees outside working hours has grown […]

Some recent, high-profile cases have highlighted the significant fines for businesses found guilty of misleading advertising. The $44.7 million fine imposed on travel group Trivago by the Federal Court for misleading customers demonstrates that making false claims in advertising can be very costly. Trivago breaches Australian Consumer Law with misleading advertising The global hotel booking […]