2020 update
On 13 August 2020, the High Court handed down a decision regarding accruing and taking paid personal/carer’s leave, overturning the previous Mondelez Australia Pty Ltd v AMWU & Ors [2020] HCA 29 decision.
This decision surrounds the method in which personal/carer’s leave can be accrued and taken under the National Employment Standards. The Fair Work Information Statement has been updated to reflect this.
For those looking to stay informed about broader changes in employment law, you can download the Employment Law updates in Australia 2023 factsheet for comprehensive insights.
If you’d like to learn more about the decision, you can find out information here.
What is the Fair Work Information Statement (FWIS)?
The Fair Work Information Statement is a statement that provides employees with the necessary conditions of their employment set out by the Fair Work Act and National Employment Standards (NES).
According to the Fair Work Act, all employees must receive this statement at the commencement of their employment with a company.
The FWIS outlines:
- National Employment Standards
- Information on flexible working arrangements
- Modern awards
- Information on the Fair Work Act
- Workplace rights
- Termination of employment
- Fair Work Ombudsman
- Fair Work Commission
What does the change mean?
The High Court found that the entitlement under the National Employment Standards to receive 10 days personal/carer’s leave per year is to be calculated on the number of ordinary hours an employee works, not the number of days they work.
10 days of personal/carer’s leave equates to 1/26 of an employee’s ordinary hours of work per year.
Understand how changes in flexible working arrangements might affect you with our factsheet on changes to flexible working arrangements.
You can view the full changes to the statement on the Fair Work website here.
How is this different from before?
This decision overturns the ruling of Mondelez Australia Pty Ltd v AMWU & Ors [2020] HCA 29 that was made in August 2019 by the Federal Court. The previous decision found that employees would receive 10 days of personal/carer’s leave per year, irrespective of whether they were employed part-time or full-time.
This meant that a part-time employee was entitled to the same amount of personal/carer’s leave (10 days per year) whether they were working 1 day or 5 days per week.
For businesses in the restaurant and hospitality industry, staying compliant is crucial. Check out our annualised wage provision changes for restaurant and hospitality awards to stay updated.
If you need more information or advice on your specific circumstances, please get in touch with Employment Innovations.
Guide to Payroll in Australia
2019 update
What’s changed with the Fair Work Information Statement in 2019?
Whilst the FWIS is usually updated around June each year to reflect changes to minimum wages, this change is a little different.
The Fair Work Commission delivered a substantial increase to the Australian national minimum wage. For details, download the national minimum wage increase factsheet 2024.
Fair Work Australia has recently updated the Fair Work Information Statement following a Full Federal Court decision handed down on 21 August 2019 which confirmed the correct method for accruing and taking paid personal/carer’s leave under the National Employment Standards.
The information in the Fair Work Information Statement has been updated to reflect this decision.
An appeal of this decision will be heard by the High Court next year, but in the meantime, the decision made on 21 August 2019 is the current state of the law and applies to affected employers and employees. Find out more about this decision.
If you need any additional information regarding this decision, you should read the case summary by our partner employment law firm, EI Legal, here. The new Fair Work Information Statement also completely changes the look and feel of the document to make it easier for employees to understand their entitlements.
Old Information Statement Fact Sheet vs New Information Statement Fact Sheet
You can find the updated information statement in Employment Hero.
For further reading on how the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill might affect your business here.
Want to keep up to date with other recent employment law changes? Here’s some further reading. 👇
