Alert for Speech Pathologists in Private Practice in Australia: do you know about the new rules for casual employees?

In Australia, new rules about casual employees came into effect on 27 March 2021.*

The new rules aim to:

• make things clearer for employees and employers when figuring out if someone is a casual employee; and
• give casual employees the right to convert to part-time or full-time employment in some circumstances.

We welcome more certainty about when someone is – or isn’t – a casual employee. But employers need to consider the new rules carefully when:

• hiring new employees; and 
• implementing systems to make offers of conversion to casual employees when required.

There are also some tricky transition rules to consider for the 6 month period from 27 March 2021.

For a great summary of the rules, and what they mean for employers, check out this article by Jack de Flamigh, a partner at law firm Corrs Chambers Westgarth.

The Fair Work Ombudsman has also published some useful information about the new rules. You can access these here.

Note: As always, this alert is informational only. Nothing in this alert constitutes or is to be taken as legal advice. Speech pathologists and other employers should seek legal advice before doing anything in response to the new rules. 

*See the Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia’s Jobs and Economic Recovery) Act 2021, which amended the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).