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(Information courtesy of Fair Work website www.fairwork.gov.au)
From 1 January 2010, state referrals of industrial relations powers from New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia and Tasmania to the Commonwealth have created a national workplace relations system which now includes all private sector employment other than employment by non-constitutional corporations in WA. All employment in Victoria, Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory was already under the national workplace relations system.
Employers and employees other than in WA that were previously covered by state industrial relations systems because the employer is not a constitutional corporation, are now covered by the national industrial relations system established by the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth). As part of the changes, some public sector and local government employment previously under the national system is now covered by state systems.
Employers and employees in the national system have the same workplace rights and obligations, regardless of the state they work in. Features of the national industrial relations system include:
- a set of 10 minimum National Employment Standards (NES)
- modern awards that apply nationally for specific industries and occupations
- a national minimum wage order (where it applies)
- enterprise bargaining, and
- protection from unfair dismissal.
Modern awards, together with the NES and the national minimum wage order, make up a new safety net for employees covered by the national workplace relations system. |