Find the latest news and updates relevant to you, a small business employer. This includes changes to workplace laws and new products or tools available.
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On this page
- 5 June 2023: New flexible work and parental leave changes
- 2 June 2023: Get set for the Annual Wage Review 2023
- 1 June 2023: Tools and resources for 6 June agreement changes
- 6 March 2023: New workplace sexual harassment laws
- 1 February 2023: Paid family and domestic violence leave
- 7 December 2022: Secure Jobs, Better Pay: changes to workplace laws
New flexible work and parental leave changes
5 June 2023
From 6 June 2023, there are changes to:
- who can request flexible working arrangements and dealing with disputes
- extending unpaid parental leave and dealing with disputes
- agreement-making and bargaining.
These changes are part of the Australian Government’s Secure Jobs, Better Pay legislation.
Flexible working arrangements
The right to request flexible working arrangements now applies to:
- employees, or a member of their immediate family or household, experiencing family and domestic violence
- employees who are pregnant.
Employers have new obligations before they can refuse a request from an employee for a flexible working arrangement.
The Fair Work Commission (the Commission) now has the power to deal with disputes about requests for flexible working arrangements.
Read our updated information at Flexible working arrangements.
Extending parental leave
Employers have new obligations before they can refuse a request from an employee requesting an extension to unpaid parental leave.
The Commission also now has the power to deal with disputes about requests for extending unpaid parental leave.
Read our updated information at Extending unpaid parental leave.
Agreement-making and bargaining
The Commission and its processes are affected by the changes to agreement-making and employer bargaining.
The Commission has published extensive information and launched free resources to help affected employers. Go to Secure Jobs Better Pay Act – what’s changing now.
More information
Learn more about these new laws from Secure Jobs, Better Pay: Changes to Australian workplace laws.
Get set for the Annual Wage Review 2023
2 June 2023
The Fair Work Commission (the Commission) has announced:
- the National Minimum Wage will be increased to $882.80 per week or $23.23 per hour
- a 5.75% increase to minimum award wages.
The increase applies from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2023.
Subscribe to email updates and we’ll let you know when the new minimum rates are available. The Commission will issue draft determinations and orders about how their decision affects awards shortly. The Commission will then update the pay rates for each award.
Learn more at Get set for the Annual Wage Review 2023.
Tools and resources for 6 June agreement changes
1 June 2023
Access new resources from the Fair Work Commission (the Commission) to help you manage upcoming changes to agreement-making.
Changes to agreements
From 6 June 2023, there are changes to agreements and agreement-making. This includes:
- changes to the better off overall test (BOOT)
- a statement of principles on genuine agreement
- changes to multi-enterprise agreements.
If you’re covered by a registered agreement or enterprise agreement, or you’re considering or bargaining for a new agreement, these changes may affect you.
These changes are part of the Secure Jobs, Better Pay legislation. Learn more from our Secure Jobs, Better Pay news article.
New resources from the Fair Work Commission
The Commission is the national workplace relations tribunal. Many of the changes to agreement-making and bargaining affect their work.
To help you prepare for these changes, the Commission has launched new resources, including:
- tools for working out obligations or changes that might apply to your registered agreement
- pre-2010 agreement resources
- information packs (including for small business employers)
- videos.
Find all these new tools and resources at Information about the Secure Jobs Better Pay Act 2022 changes.
New workplace sexual harassment laws
6 March 2023
Workplace sexual harassment is prohibited under the Fair Work Act from 6 March 2023.
These new provisions expand protections from sexual harassment to protect workers, future workers and people conducting a business or undertaking.
The Fair Work Commission (the national workplace tribunal) also now has greater powers to deal with workplace sexual harassment.
These changes are part of the Australian Government’s Secure Jobs, Better Pay legislation.
Learn more at New workplace sexual harassment laws.
Paid family and domestic violence leave
1 February 2023
From 1 February 2023, paid family and domestic violence leave is available for eligible employees of non-small business employers (an employer with 15 or more employees on 1 February 2023).
The leave is available from 1 August 2023 for eligible employees of small business employers (an employer with less than 15 employees on 1 February 2023).
Until 1 August, employees of small business employers can continue to take unpaid family and domestic violence leave.
Learn more at New paid family and domestic violence leave.
Make sure you’re subscribed to email updates to be told when we’ve updated our information and tools for 1 August.
Secure Jobs, Better Pay: changes to workplace laws
7 December 2022
The Australian Government has passed the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Secure Jobs, Better Pay) Act 2022. This legislation amends the Fair Work Act to change several existing rules and introduces a range of new workplace laws.
Many of these changes started on 7 December 2022, but other changes started later.
For small business employers, key changes include:
- prohibiting pay secrecy
- giving employees the right to share (or not share) pay information
- banning job ads with pay rates that would breach the Fair Work Act
- giving more employees access to flexible work arrangements
- prohibiting workplace sexual harassment.
Find out more about these changes and when they start at: