Mapien Blog

Danielle Wood is the CEO of the Grattan Institute, and she joins Mapien's Troy Gread to dissect the "Women's work: The impact of the COVID crisis on Australian women" Gratton report and what needs to be done at a corporate and government level to help women transition back into the work place beyond Covid.

Work has changed. The way that we work with each other, collaborate, and achieve the level of productivity that we are comfortable with has changed. The world has been forced to adapt and embrace technology and a flexible way of working, and it is unlikely that it will changing back.

Employers will recall that the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth.) was varied on 27 March this year to enable eligible casual employees with 12 months service to seek conversion to permanent employment. Employers should therefore be mindful of their obligations in relation to eligible casuals employees and assess whether these casual employees should be offered or not offered permanent employment from 27 September 2021. Find out what employers need to know here.

The Hon Graeme Watson joins us with over 40 years’ experience in workplace and industrial relations to discuss IR reform, the slow death of enterprise bargaining, and the fundamental changes required for business productivity through bargaining on the other side of Covid. Graeme shares his advice, his suggestions, and ideas on how businesses need to adjust when crafting their EA bargaining strategies. The AFR’s ‘Workplace Warrior’ has been involved, and settled, some of the biggest and most publicised industrial relations cases in Australian workplace history.

A Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission (‘FWC’) has varied the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2020 to include loaded rates. This loaded rate variation will provide added flexibility for employers. However, employers will need to ensure that they comply with the associated arrangements and utilise the most appropriate loaded rate.

Changes to NSW Public Health Orders over the weekend have provided greater clarity for employers employing ‘authorised workers’ living in the 12 areas/LGAs of concern in Sydney. Find out what employers need to know here.

Congratulations to our newest Principal Consultants, Jenna Cuthbertson and Sara Spivey. Jenna and Sara bring extensive experience both within and outside the business to Mapien and we're so lucky to have them as part of the team.

We speak to the Father of Modern HR, Dave Ulrich, about 'harnessing uncertainty' and what a worldwide pandemic means for HR in Australia. We get personal with Dave and find out how the most recognisable global HR facilitator and presenter pivots when he's confined to his home office as he offers up some of his most valuable advice yet. As LinkedIn creates a breeding ground for a new wave of HR philosophers, Dave shares he's candid response to those who have recently challenged his HR concepts, theories and models on LinkedIn.

The High Court has today unanimously overturned the Full Federal Court’s decision in WorkPac Pty Ltd v Rossato, by holding that Mr Rossato was a casual employee for the purposes of the Fair Work Act 2009 (the Act).

Where a government health directive is in place then the implementation of a mandatory COVID-19 vaccination policy at the workplace will be straight forward. However, if this is not the case, then employers will need to consider issues concerning WHS, workers’ compensation, discrimination and potentially whether there would be a valid reason for dismissal for non-compliance.

Mapien is pleased to announce the appointment of Nadia Taylor to the role of Chief Executive Officer with effect from August 2, 2021 signalling the next stage of Mapien’s growth.

With the commencement of the new financial year, several changes to superannuation are now effective or scheduled to take effect throughout 2021-22. Find out what employers should be aware of & what to expect here.

The Fair Work Commission’s Expert Panel has awarded a 2.5% increase to the national minimum wage and the minimum wages in Modern Awards. Accordingly, all Modern Award minimum weekly wages will be increased by 2.5%. Read more...

Are you getting the most value from your psychometric assessments? When we talk about maximizing value, it’s not just about gaining the most out of the assessments during the selection process, or using testing as a section tool in the most efficient way possible, it’s also about saving big money down the line by protecting yourself from a costly bad hire.

A recent decision by BlueScope Steel to outsource a component of their operation was found to be fair and most importantly, it was done the right way, despite the fact it resulted in the unfortunate loss of jobs. This finding highlights to employers that it is ok to seek out, and implement, operational efficiencies in the workplace, but importantly, the need to do it right, to follow employer obligations to properly consult with effected employees and to consider any proposals put to the business by those employees.

Is it better to work with like-minded people or to have a team that challenges one another? Behavioural scientists have known for long time that diverse teams have the advantage. However, while leaders are eager to build diversity, when it comes to hiring, they may also fear introducing new members who won't 'slot in'. The good news is, you don’t need to have interpersonal similarity to create team cohesion.

One of the first considerations of the "Womens' Taskforce" introduced to the Federal Cabinet earlier this year was the 55 recommendations from the “Respect@Work” Report, and today it has been announced that the Federal Government has accepted (wholly, in part or in principle) all 55 recommendations made in the Report.

Employers need to be mindful that any proposed redundancy requires strict compliance with the genuine redundancy requirements of the FW Act. Despite a reason for redundancy being due to operational requirements, a failure to comply with the consultation requirements of any applicable modern award or enterprise agreement and consider reasonable redeployment opportunities will invalidate the whole process.