Recent news

Latest items of recent news relevant to Australia as reported in our fortnightly newswire ‘Dernières nouvelles’.

Australia: Tasmania to give cash payments to temporary visa holders affected by coronavirus pandemic

Visa holders who are stuck in the state of Tasmania because of the coronavirus pandemic will be eligible for a one-off payment of $250 (US$163) for individuals and $1,000 (US$652) for families, as long as they can demonstrate genuine financial hardship …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Labour hire licence applications received before 30 June 2020

According to the Labour Hire Authority in Victoria, labour hire firms may continue to operate without a licence for the time being, provided a licence application is submitted by midnight on the 30th of June 2020 and there is no evidence of previous non-compliance …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Fair Work Commission amends award entitlements

The Federal Work Commission has temporarily suspended sections of 99 modern awards in order to allow employers to send employees home on 2 weeks’ unpaid leave if they have to self-isolate, or the employee is unable to work because the government has temporarily closed their business …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Fair Work Commission – two applications to reduce redundancy pay due to incapacity to pay – two different outcomes

There is some confusion around the scope that the Fair Work Commission (FWC) is giving employers in financial difficulty to reduce statutory redundancy pay …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

ANZACs: Coronavirus: Will summer make a difference?

There has been much speculation about why Australia and New Zealand have not appeared to be hit by the pandemic as much as most other countries …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Religious Discrimination Bill

Although a second draft Religious Discrimination Bill was published last December, the current health crisis has limited parliamentary debate …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: CPD points requirements for lawyers

The deadline for practicing lawyers to gain their mandatory CPD points is March 31st …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: BP told to reinstate worker sacked for posting Hitler parody video

The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has ordered the oil company BP to reinstate and compensate a technician who had posted a film parodying the company’s senior management on social media …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Government extends coronavirus ban on travel from China

The government has taken the radical step of banning entry to all foreigners arriving from mainland China – unless they are an Australian citizen, permanent resident, or immediate family member (spouse, minor dependant or legal guardian) of an Australian citizen or permanent resident …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Annualised wages in modern awards

Employers that pay annualised salaries that are made under certain “modern awards” will need to comply with new strict procedures on notification, record-keeping and reconciliation requirements by the 1st of March 2020 …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Selected U.S. visa issuance fees sharply increase for Australian nationals

Under the new reciprocity schedule, fees for certain visa categories (E-1, E-2, F-1, F-2, H-1B, H-4, L-1, L-2, R-1 and R-2) have increased significantly for Australian nationals applying to visit the United States …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Chile reciprocity fee for Australians scrapped under new visa arrangements

Australian visitors will no longer have to pay a US$117 reciprocity fee at the border when entering Chile via Santiago Airport …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Work health & safety

The New South Wales Government has made several proposed amendments to the Work Health & Safety Act …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: New mega union to shift balance of power in Labor

The National Union of Workers (NUW) has just merged with United Voice to form The United Workers Union (UWU) …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.

Australia: Queensland government creates half-day public holiday on Christmas Eve

A new law has been passed in the state of Queensland declaring the period after 6pm on Christmas Eve a public part-holiday …

Please login to view this content or become a member by joining now.