Award Modernisation

What are Modern Awards?

The Australian Industrial Relations Commission is modernising all State and Federal awards. This involves taking more than 4000 State and Federal Awards which apply across Australia, and streamlining them into approximately 130 new Modern Awards.

Your employees will become covered by the new Modern Awards on 1 January 2010 and your current award will expire on this date.

How do I know which Modern Awards cover my business?

To decide which Modern Award should be applied, you must look at the coverage provisions of the Modern Award. Modern Awards are available for review at Livingstones Modern Awards Documentation Page.

What should I do after I confirm which Modern Award applies?

The next step is to become familiar with the Modern Award. When you read the Award, you should consider how the Modern Award compares to your current award. Some of the questions you should ask are:

Which classifications would cover my employees under the Modern Award?
What are the wage rates for those classifications?
What ordinary hours can be worked under the Modern Award?
What penalty rates are payable under the Modern Award?
What allowances are payable under the Modern Award?
What overtime rates are payable under the Modern Award?

Your Livingstones Consultant can prepare a comparison of your previous award with the Modern Award , however, this is outside of the scope of your IRS Award Supply subscription service. Fees are payable for this , in ahccordance with the Schedule of Professional Fees.

What are the transitional provisions?

On 1 January 2010, you must apply the provisions of the modern award. However, most modern awards will include transitional provisions.

The transitional provisions allow for some current award conditions to continue to apply. These include Minimum wages, casual and part-time loadings, Saturday, Sunday, public holiday and other penalties and shift allowances.

The transitional provisions have the potential to be extremely complicated given the different arrangements for different employers. The transitional provisions will allow for an incremental transition until 1 July 2013.

Consulting Support on using Transitional Calculator

Transitional Support

To assist our clients navigate through the complex transitioning period, Livingstones has prepared a Modern Awards Transitional Calculator.
This calculator, developed in Microsoft Excel 2002, can be purchased for $550 inc GST per annum.
Purchasing the calculator includes an initial handover and training (via phone and Internet) on how to best use the calculator.
The calculator has been designed to assist payroll officers and HR professionals make the complex transitional calculations for Award Based employees.
Alternatively, a Livingstones Consultant can be engaged to assist with the development of your own customised Modern Awards Transitional Calculator at discounted consultancy rates commencing at $110 inc GST per hour.
This calculator will be automatically updated for the annual minimum wage decision of 1 July each year.

Questions

For more Modern Award information and for answers to transitional questions visit Livingstones' dedicated Modern Awards Website.

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