Changes contained in the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Act 2021 took effect last Saturday (27 March).
As part of the changes contained in the Act, the Fair Work Ombudsman (FWO) today gazetted a new Casual Employment Information Statement which employers must provide to both current and new casual employees.
The FWO has also published an updated version of the Fair Work Information Statement which reflects the changes contained in the Act.
New employer obligation – Casual Employment Information Statement
As a result of the Act coming into force employers are now required to provide the Casual Employment Information Statement to both new and existing casual employees.
For every new casual employee, employers must provide a copy of the Casual Employment Information Statement before, or as soon as possible after, they start their new job.
All employers (except small business employers) must give all existing casual employees a copy of the Casual Employment Information Statement as soon as possible after 27 September 2021 (six months from the date of commencement of the Act).
Employers can give casual employees the Casual Employment Information Statement either in person, by mail, by emailing a copy of the statement or a link to the statement on the FWO website (if the employee agrees).
The Casual Employment Information Statement can be provided to casual employees at the same time as an employer provides the Fair Work Information Statement.
Updated Fair Work Information Statement
As a consequence of the Act commencing, the FWO has gazetted an updated version of the Fair Work Information Statement. The new version contains the changes including:
- reference to the need for casual employees to also be provided with the Casual Employment Information Statement on commencement
- casual conversion in the NES summary
Employers will need to ensure that this updated version of the statement is provided to all new employees before, or as soon as possible after, they start their new job. Employers are also reminded to update their onboarding and recruitment documents to include the new and updated statements.
The FWO was required to publish the Casual Employment Information Statement on commencement of the Act which impacted its ability to conduct public consultation on its contents. It is possible that the FWO will consider inviting feedback on the new version of the statement.
AREEA members with feedback on the new of the Casual Employment Information Statement should contact [email protected].
