Clerical and Administrative Employees in Temporary Employment Services (State) Award

 

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMISSION OF NEW SOUTH WALES

 

FULL BENCH

 

Application by New South Wales Local Government, Clerical, Administrative, Energy, Airlines & Utilities Union, Industrial Organisation of Employees.

 

(No. IRC 1306 of 2006)

 

 

VARIATION

 

1.          Insert after subclause (ii) of clause 5, Terms of Engagement, of the award published 10 November 2000 (320 I.G. 56) the following new subclause (iii):

 

(iii)       Secure Employment -

 

(a)        Definitions

 

For the purposes of this clause:

 

(i)         A reference to a casual employee is to be read as a reference to a person employed as an hourly temporary employee under this award.

 

(ii)        A reference to casual employment is to be read as a reference to employment as an hourly temporary employee under this award.

 

(iii)       A reference to a full-time employee is to be read as a reference to a person employed on a permanent basis to work 38 hours per week with all the rights and benefits of a weekly temporary employee under this award.

 

(iv)      A reference to permanent full-time employment or full-time employment is to be read as a reference to employment on permanent basis for 38 hours per week with all the rights and benefits of a weekly temporary employee under this award.

 

(v)       A reference to a part-time employee is to be read as a reference to a person employed on a permanent basis to work more than 12 but less than 38 hours per week with all the rights and benefits of a part-time temporary employee under this award.

 

(vi)      A reference to permanent part-time employment or part-time employment is to be read as a reference to employment on a permanent basis for more than 12 but less than 38 hours per week with all the rights and benefits of a part-time temporary employee under this award.

 

(b)        Objective of this clause

 

The objective of this clause is for the employer to take all reasonable steps to provide its employees with secure employment by maximising the number of permanent positions in the employer’s workforce, in particular by ensuring that casual employees have an opportunity to elect to become full-time or part-time employees.

 

(c)        Casual conversion

 

(i)         A casual employee engaged by a particular employer on a regular and systematic basis for a sequence of periods of employment under this Award during a calendar period of nine months shall thereafter have the right to elect to have his or her ongoing contract of employment converted to permanent full-time employment or part-time employment if the employment is to continue beyond the conversion process prescribed by this subclause.

 

(ii)        Every employer of such a casual employee shall give the employee notice in writing of the provisions of this sub-clause within four weeks of the employee having attained such period of nine months. However, the employee retains his or her right of election under this subclause if the employer fails to comply with this notice requirement.

 

(iii)       Any casual employee who has a right to elect under paragraph (b)(i), upon receiving notice under paragraph (b)(ii) or after the expiry of the time for giving such notice, may give four weeks’ notice in writing to the employer that he or she seeks to elect to convert his or her ongoing contract of employment to full-time or part-time employment, and within four weeks of receiving such notice from the employee, the employer shall consent to or refuse the election, but shall not unreasonably so refuse. Where an employer refuses an election to convert, the reasons for doing so shall be fully stated and discussed with the employee concerned, and a genuine attempt shall be made to reach agreement. Any dispute about a refusal of an election to convert an ongoing contract of employment shall be dealt with as far as practicable and with expedition through the disputes settlement procedure.

 

(iv)      Any casual employee who does not, within four weeks of receiving written notice from the employer, elect to convert his or her ongoing contract of employment to full-time employment or part-time employment will be deemed to have elected against any such conversion.

 

(v)       Once a casual employee has elected to become and been converted to a full-time employee or a part-time employee, the employee may only revert to casual employment by written agreement with the employer.

 

(vi)      If a casual employee has elected to have his or her contract of employment converted to full-time or part-time employment in accordance with paragraph (b)(iii), the employer and employee shall, in accordance with this paragraph, and subject to paragraph (b)(iii), discuss and agree upon:

 

(1)        whether the employee will convert to full-time or part-time employment; and

 

(2)        if it is agreed that the employee will become a part-time employee, the number of hours and the pattern of hours that will be worked either consistent with any other part-time employment provisions of this award or pursuant to a part time work agreement made under Chapter 2, Part 5 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW);

 

Provided that an employee who has worked on a full-time basis throughout the period of casual employment has the right to elect to convert his or her contract of employment to full-time employment and an employee who has worked on a part-time basis during the period of casual employment has the right to elect to convert his or her contract of employment to part-time employment, on the basis of the same number of hours and times of work as previously worked, unless other arrangements are agreed between the employer and the employee.

 

(vii)     Following an agreement being reached pursuant to paragraph (vi), the employee shall convert to full-time or part-time employment. If there is any dispute about the arrangements to apply to an employee converting from casual employment to full-time or part-time employment, it shall be dealt with as far as practicable and with expedition through the disputes settlement procedure.

 

(viii)    An employee must not be engaged and re-engaged, dismissed or replaced in order to avoid any obligation under this subclause.

 

3.          This variation shall take effect from 24 March 2006.

 

 

 

F. L. WRIGHT  J, President.

M. J. WALTON  J, Vice-President.

The Honourable Justice Haylen

I. TABBAA, Commissioner.

 

 

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Printed by the authority of the Industrial Registrar.