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.