Employees that are not covered by a modern award or another registered agreement are subject to the national minimum wage. This wage is the yearly reviewed, minimum payment required to be paid by all Australian employers to their employees and is identified within the Fair Work Act 2009.
The annual review by the Fair Work Commission covers both the national Minimum wage and the minimum payments under these awards. The review is conducted by the Expert Panel of the Commission from March to June. If the Fair Work Commission makes changes to the fair work award rates, it is applied to the first full pay period from 1 July each year.
Keep reading this Legal Kitz blog to learn more about the award wage in Queensland!
What is the modern award?
The modern award covers the majority of the private sector workplaces throughout Queensland. The modern award sets out the minimum conditions for employees and employers working in the same occupation. The difference between the modern award wage vs minimum wage, is that the awards set the minimum wage for employees, based on the industry they work in.
What does the Expert Panel of the Commission review?
The Panel is required by the Fair Work Act 2009 to review the minimum wages in the modern awards and transitional instruments and the national minimum wage order from the previous annual review. The outcome will directly affect employees who are in the national system that is covered by a modern award or transitional instrument, or that is not covered by either award or agreement.
Why is the award wage reviewed?
An employee is entitled to modern awards which sets out minimum wages and conditions. However, these awards do not apply when an employer either has an enterprise agreement or another registered agreement where an employee is covered.
There are different types of award wages that are taken into consideration and this is because some employers have different minimum wages depending on the type of employment, the employee’s age, and their work capacity.
What are the national employment standards?
The National Employment Standards (NES) are provided in the Fair Work Act 2009. Under these standards, Australian employees are provided with the following 11 minimum entitlements:
- Request for flexible working arrangements;
- Maximum hours of work per week;
- Annual leave;
- Offers and requests to convert from casual to permanent employment;
- Parental leave;
- Long service leave;
- Public holidays;
- Community service leave;
- Unpaid family and domestic violence leave, compassionate leave, and personal and carer’s leave;
- Termination notice and redundancy pay; and
- Provisions from the Fair Work Information Statement.
Calculating your own award rate
The Fair Work Ombudsman provides resources to assist you in calculating your award wage for yourself and your employees. The Fair Work Ombudsman’s award wage calculator and fair work pay calculator can be found here.
Requirements for ending employment
If you are an employer considering dismissing an employee, it is advised that you are aware of your legal obligations to ensure that the termination is lawful and not unfair. The National Employment Scheme has provided an outline of employers’ and employees’ rights and responsibilities in regard to termination of employment.
This includes:
- A notice of termination periods to comply with;
- A redundancy calculator;
- Provisions governing the final pay requirements;
- Unfair dismissal and the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code; and
- Bankruptcy and liquidation information.
This can be found on the Fair Work Ombudsman website.
What happens when you have unpaid wages?
In the circumstance that you have underpaid wages, such as tool allowances and penalty wages. An employee is able to make a claim to the Industrial Magistrates Court. By doing this, smaller claims can be resolved through conciliation.
Legal advice
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