4 out of 5 SMBs Not Ready For New IR Laws

Four out of five small businesses say they’re not ready for the introduction of the new workplace laws, many of which come into effect on 1 July 2009, according to new research released from AMR Interactive.

Workforce Guardian worked with Telstra Business who commissioned the research to coincide with the April launch of Workforce Guardian on Telstra Business new portal for Small Business – T-Suite. The research found that while small businesses were well aware of the new IR laws, 45 percent were either unprepared or uncertain about the changes and their potential impact.

While most SMBs are aware the laws are changing, they are struggling with what the changes mean for their business and how they can manage the risk given that fines and remedies are the same for small business as for big business. According to the research, almost one third of all businesses (32%) think the changes will have a negative impact on their business and close to half (46%) of businesses currently have no systems in place to manage the new IR laws.

With new unfair dismissal laws coming into effect from 1 July 2009, and national employment standards and modern awards from 1 January 2010, time poor and resource constrained small businesses need to automate their HR processes as quickly as possible or seek advice from their business advisor.

How will the IR Law changes affect my business?

Timetable for change - two key dates:
01 July 2009 – the majority of the new system commences: i.e. unfair dismissal, agreement making, general protections, right of entry etc.
01 January 2010 – 10 National Employment Standards and the Modern Awards commence.

A substantive change impacting a large number of businesses is the commencement of the new Unfair Dismissal provisions on July 1 2009.

* The threshold for protection from unfair dismissal claims will drop from 100 to 15 employee businesses.
* A new Small Business Fair Dismissal Code – will apply to businesses with less than 15 FTE employees and a new checklist to ensure businesses can comply with the guidelines has been released as part of the Code
* If an unfair dismissal is found by Fair Work Australia, remedies include reinstatement (as the primary remedy) or compensation which may be ordered to a maximum of six months pay. Businesses employing more than 15 employees will be protected only if the employee has not completed the six months qualifying period, or the period of probation specified in the employment agreement.
* From 2010 Fair Work Australia will handle unfair dismissal claims, using a less formal, less legalistic process than that followed by the existing Industrial Relations Commission. While the new system should reduce costs for employers defending claims it could also make it easier for employees to bring claims against employers.

Need more information?

For more information on how the changes to IR laws will affect your business, you can register for our free and informative webinar. By attending the webinar you will gain an understanding of:

• An overview of the IR laws within the new Fair Work legislation
  
• What is a small business? How do you count < 15 employees?
  
• What is an unfair dismissal and what is a summary dismissal
  
• What the new Small Business Fair Dismissal Code is all about
  
• How the new Small Business Fair Dismissal Checklist will help protect your business
  
• How do businesses larger than 15 FTE’s manage their risk?
  
• Key steps to take in transitioning to the new compliance obligations

Workforce Guardian presents a FREE webinar that helps SMBs navigate through the IR law changes to ensure they will be protected.

Alternatively, please visit our website - Workforce Guardian - Australia’s most comprehensive and inexpensive online employment relations service that helps employers navigate confusing employment law in order to properly hire, manage and exit employees.

Disclaimer
This article is intended to provide commentary and general information. It should not be relied upon as legal advice. Formal legal advice may be necessary in particular transactions or on matters of interest arising from this article. Workforce Guardian Pty Ltd is not responsible for the results of any actions taken on the basis of information in this article, nor for any error or omission in this article.