the employment contract

The employment contract

The Employment contract is :: a legally binding, formal agreement between an employer and employee

Common law is :: laws developed by courts and tribunals.
Judges make decisions based on the facts of a case, guided by a precedent.
Under common law, both parties have basic obligations in any employment relationship.

must be provided by employers
- and state the minimum conditions for employees
provides a greater safety net for employees
- especially the venerable (or low paid) ones
provides basis from which modern awards and enterprise agreements are constructed

minimum wages are determined by awards, enterprise agreements, or national minimum wage.
every year they are reviewed by the Fair Work Commission’s Minimum Wage Panel.

An award is a :: determination that explains the legally enforceable minimum terms and conditions that apply to a business or industry.
- legally enforceable, formal agreements made collectively between employers and employees
  - (and their reps at the industry level)
Modern awards are a key feature of the current industrial relations system
Awards have recently undergone award simplification
- to reduce confusion surrounding proper Minimum employment standards
- Award conditions still apply on top of the National employment standards and act as a basis for negotiation in Enterprise agreements
Contents of modern awards include:
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Base pay rates
Overtime and penalty rates
Allowances
Leave and leave loading
Hours of work
Superannuation entitlements
Individual Flexibility Agreements (IFA) allow :: an employer and employee to come to an agreement that varies the modern award or enterprise agreement to address their individual circumstances.

Enterprise agreements are
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collective agreements made at a workplace level between an employer and a group of employees about terms and conditions of employment.
- Key features:
  - over pay rates, penalty rates, overtime, allowances, hours, and leave.
must be approved by the Fair Work Commission
- must be a genuine agreement in a timely and fair manner
- passes a ‘better off overall test’ (BOOT)
- does not include unlawful terms
Under Fair Work Act 2009, the three types of enterprise agreements are:
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Single enterprise: between a single employer and group of employees
Multi enterprise: between two or more employers and groups of their employees
Greenfields agreements: a (genuinely) new single-enterprise and multi-enterprise agreement, made before having any employees covered by it
a ‘better off overall test’ (BOOT) requires that :: each of the employees to be covered by the agreement is better off overall than under the relevant modern award.

Individual contracts are:
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when an employer and individual employee negotiate a contract covering pay and conditions
more common in the private sector, professionals, and management
- ==who currently earn > $153,600/year==
  - (figure changes annually)
Independent contractors (a.k.a. consultants/freelancers)
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undertake work for others but do not have the same legal status as an employee
Fair Work Commission provides clear criteria to determine whether someone is a contractor or an employee
Casual employment
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employment that is short-term, irregular, and uncertain.
casual employees not entitled to paid holiday or sick leave
increased from ==16% (1990) to 30% (2013)==
employers often prefer casual as it reduces on-costs
on-costs are :: additional costs involved in hiring an employee, above the cost of their wages. (adds to approx. 25% of the raw wage cost)
Part-time employment
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continuing employment and work <38 hours/week
- they receive entitlements on a pro-rata basis
  - (in proportion to the % of time worked relative to a full-time employee)
25%~ of part-time workers are under-employed