Work Smart December 2008

WELCOME to the December edition of Work Smart, your quarterly online community newsletter from OIR. This newsletter is for anyone working with, or interested in the employment rights of, young people and people from culturally and linguistically diverse communities in NSW.

This edition features a number of new online resources, including the recently launched Mega Mall Master game from the Office of Fair Trading - a fun, interactive tool for learning about consumer rights and employment issues, the new Caring Works online discussion board where you can have your say about balancing caring responsibilities with paid work, and the winning entries in the OIR Know the Deal youth video competition. All of the competition entries were of a high standard and very creative, so congratulations to everyone who participated!

Also in this edition we bring you a quick and easy guide to what's happening with the federal industrial relations legislation, information about a special discount rate on OIR workshops for your community organisation or network, and news of translated OIR publications now available on our website.

Following up on feedback from our June reader survey, we have also included some information on how to deal with bullying in the workplace.

Important Reminder - Unpaid work trials are illegal!
Over the Christmas season a lot of businesses need to take on extra staff. It is important to remember that you must be paid for any work that you do. This includes on-the-job training and any work done on a trial basis. This does not include work experience that is completed as part of a formal educational course (for instance through TAFE, high school or university).

If you don't get paid for the work you do, or if you have any questions about your workplace rights and entitlements, call the OIR Information Hotline on 131 628. TTY number: 1800 555 677. Interpreters are available - just ask for the language you want.

Enjoy December Work Smart and don't forget to email us with your comments at crt@oir.commerce.nsw.gov.au
You can see earlier editions of Work Smart at the
e-Newsletters section of the OIR Website and you can now subscribe and unsubscribe online.

OIR wishes you all a very safe and happy holiday season!

What is it?

On the 25th November this year Deputy Prime Minister and Workplace Relations Minister, Julia Gillard, introduced the Fair Work Bill into the Commonwealth Parliament. This Bill is the proposed legislation that outlines the Rudd Government's new workplace relations system.

Introduction of the Fair Work Bill follows a year of consultations between the federal government and business, unions and State and Territory governments about what should be in the new federal industrial relations legislation.

The Bill is based on the Labour Government's Forward with Fairness policy and its aim is to create a national workplace relations system for the private sector.

When will the new laws start?

The establishment of Fair Work Australia and the sections of legislation about bargaining and unfair dismissals are due to be made into law by the middle of next year. The National Employment Standards, modern awards and the new wages system are due to start on 1st January 2010.

Work Smart will continue to bring you updates on the progress of the federal industrial relations legislation in future editions. For more information about what's in the Bill see the Second Reading Speech.

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OIR invites you to participate in a new online discussion board, looking at the issues around successfully balancing caring responsibilities with paid work - particularly those affecting mature aged carers.

OIR launched the discussion board in early November to continue discussions that began at its Caring Works Forum on 23rd October this year.

Caring Works Forum

The NSW Minister for Industrial Relations, John Hatzistergos, launched the Caring Works DVD at the forum. This DVD demonstrates some success stories in relation to the employment of mature aged carers.

The Minister also launched Bringing out the Best - a focus group report based on an 18 month research project that looked at specific issues faced by mature aged workers with caring responsibilities.

The Caring Works Forum brought together various stakeholders and industry speakers to discuss key issues surrounding the successful participation of mature aged carers in the workforce.

Representatives from the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Carers NSW, the Working Carers Gateway, Australian Industry Group and the University of NSW led discussions focusing on the need, particularly in this time of labour shortages and an ageing population, for organisations to look for creative solutions to meet the employment challenges of the future.

The Forum's Question and Answer session raised a number of discussion topics, including how to change attitudes, workplace training, addressing practical issues in the workplace, assumptions about working carers and business benefits of employing mature aged carers.

OIR is very keen to have your input on these issues, for the development of future initiatives. We would also like to hear about any relevant topics you feel may be missing. Please let us know so we can add them to the discussion.

If you know other people who may be interested in adding their thoughts to these discussions, please forward this information on to them.

Information and resources for carers

Visit the Caring Works section of OIR's Work and Family website to view the content of the DVD and access the Bringing out the Best report and the discussion board. You will also find a range of useful links and resources, including the fact sheets: Why older workers are in demand, Mature age workers with caring responsibilities, and A quick guide to introducing workplace flexibility.

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Congratulations to all of the high school students who submitted entries in OIR's Know the Deal youth video competition.

First prize in the Sydney and regional sections went to MLC in Burwood and James Fallon High School in Albury, respectively.

NSW Minister for Industrial Relations, John Hatzistergos, presented the three regional and three Sydney based winning high school teams with their awards in a ceremony at Parliament House in Sydney on October 29.

Mr Hatzistergos commended everyone who took part in the competition on the high standard of their video entries and congratulated the winning teams for their success in promoting workplace information to their peers.

The competition encouraged high school students from across the state to develop a short, creative video of up to two minutes in length, promoting at least one key message about workplace rights. The video also had to promote the OIR's Young People at Work website and appeal to young people between 14 and 20 years of age.

The winning video clips highlight important workplace issues such as unpaid work trials, rates of pay, leave entitlements and signing workplace agreements.

While the competition was running, visitors to the Young People at Work website almost doubled. You can watch some of the winning entries and see the full list of winners at the Young People at Work website.

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The Office of Fair Trading (OFT) launched its new Master of the Mall online game at a Youth Forum in Sydney during Fair Trading Week (November 17 to 21).

Set in a virtual shopping centre, Master of the Mall is a fun, interactive resource that helps players learn about a broad range of shopping, work-related and financial literacy topics from the senior high school Commerce syllabus.

Players create a personalised avatar (online character) to navigate through adventures and challenges around the Mojo Mega shopping mall. With quizzes, mini-games and missions, you learn about everything from consumer rights, refunds and contracts, to workplace policies, dismissal notices, occupational health and safety and much more.

Game progress is tracked with a 'mission key' that lights up as your knowledge of consumer and work related issues improves. At the end of the game you use the key to unlock the prize room, become a winner and are granted the title of Master of the Mall.

There is an accompanying teacher's manual that is packed with a variety of classroom activities, case studies and scenarios as well as a handy glossary and useful website links. The manual and a CD Rom of the game will be sent to all NSW high schools in February next year.

The Master of the Mall was developed by the Office of Fair Trading in partnership with the Office of Industrial Relations, Department of Education and Training and WorkCover NSW.

To embark on your Master of the Mall adventure, just visit theMoney Stuff website and follow the prompts. Give your feedback (and make the game even better) via email to the game designers at marketing-moneystuff@oft.commerce.nsw.gov.au

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OIR's Workplace Advice Unit is offering a special deal on its Better Workplace Management series of workshops for organisations and networks from the community sector.

The series, which is made up of workshops on Recruitment & Retention, Writing Workplace Policies, and Managing Employees, usually costs $225. If these workshops are taken separately, they usually cost $99 per workshop. These costs include GST.

For community groups and networks, OIR will negotiate a discounted rate.

The presenter will come to your organisation or another local venue to present the workshops. A minimum of ten people is required and the more people you gather, the cheaper it will be per person. In addition to these paid workshops, OIR will deliver the free Social and Community Services (SACS) award workshop as part of the package.

Manager of the Workplace Advice Unit, Robin Amos, says that one of the main advantages of this kind of arrangement is that people from the same industry can share their experiences and information in the sessions.

"Participants often come away with ideas they can apply directly in their own workplace, both from the presentations and from hearing how others doing the same kind of work have dealt successfully with challenging behaviour and situations.

"We find that participants also gain valuable support from their peers in this kind of forum and many keep in contact with others they meet at the workshops for on-going support into the future", said Robin.

For more information or to book the Better Workplace Management workshops for your community group or network, call Robin Amos, Manager Workplace Advice, on 02 9020 4614.

The full schedule of employer workshops for January to June 2009 is available on the OIR website. You can also read feedback from previous workshop participants.

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Businesses often close temporarily over the Christmas/New Year period as part of a planned 'annual close down'.

Employers must tell staff about this one month before the close down starts.

If an employee doesn't have a full year's leave entitlements and has to take time off because of a close down, part of their holidays may have to be taken as leave without pay.

Employees who have worked for less than 12 months are entitled to part of their annual leave payments ('pro rata' payments).

For more information see the OIR website or call our hotline on 131 628.

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The OIR is continually reviewing and updating its printed and online resources to reflect changes to industrial relations laws affecting workers and employers in NSW.

Several key publications have also recently been translated into additional community languages.

The popular and informative Working in NSW fact sheet that explains workers' rights and entitlements under NSW state industrial relations laws is now available in Croatian, Macedonian and Serbian, and will soon also be available in Japanese and Thai. This is in addition to the existing English, Arabic, Chinese, Korean, Spanish, Turkish and Vietnamese versions.

The Our Services brochure, which explains what OIR does, currently incorporates ten of the above languages. The new version, currently in production, will also include Japanese and Thai.

The following publications are available in English, Chinese and Vietnamese.

• Annual Holidays
• Awards & Enterprise Agreements
• Long Service Leave
• Pay Slips
• Personal Carers & Bereavement Leave
• Unfair Dismissals
• Employer's Checklist - What employers must do to comply with NSW industrial relations laws (also available in Korean)

All of these resources are available from the publications section of the OIR website.

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What is it?

Bullying is unwanted, offensive and often also frightening behaviour.

It can involve:

• Shouting or abusive language (including swearing or name-calling)
• Laughter or insulting comments because of your lack of experience, appearance, race, religion or sexual preference
• Physical abuse - people pushing, poking, tripping, hitting or threatening to hurt you.

At work bullying can come from co-workers, supervisors or customers. There are many different forms of bullying. See the resources below for more information.

What can I do if I feel bullied?

There are a number of things you can do if you feel you are being bullied:

• Tell the person or people to stop
• Tell your boss, your human resources manager or occupational health and safety representative
• Keep a diary of events
• Contact WorkCover NSW on 131 050 or visit www.workcover.nsw.gov.au

It's always a good idea to tell the person or people who you feel are bullying you to stop. Sometimes people think their behaviour is okay because they are "just joking". If you tell them their behaviour is hurting you they can't claim they didn't know.

Where can I get more help?

Workplace bullying is a serious problem. There is a lot of information available that can help you to understand why it happens and how and where you can get help if it happens to you.

If you are having problems with bullying, you should first call WorkCover NSW on 131 050 to discuss the issue or have a look at the bullying related publications available on their website.

OIR also has information on how to take an active approach to target bullying at work.

Some other websites and resources you may find useful include:

Union Safe (Labour Council of NSW) - 1800 688 919 Bullying Campaign fact sheets
Workers Health Centre NSW - 9749 7666 Bullying at Work fact sheetMental Health Association NSW Inc - 1300 794 991 Workplace Bullying fact sheet

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Question: What happens when an inspector from the Office of Industrial Relations visits a workplace?

Answer: The Office of Industrial Relations is responsible for making sure that employers and employees comply with NSW industrial relations laws.

OIR inspectors may visit a workplace as part of an investigation into an alleged breach of NSW industrial laws. However, you are most likely to see an inspector in your workplace through OIR's state-wide education and compliance campaigns. These campaigns involve regular inspections of workplaces in major industries and regions throughout NSW.

Each inspector carries a certificate of authority. You or your boss can ask the inspector to show you their official certificate.

During an initial visit the inspector will ask the boss questions about employment records and employment conditions in the workplace. The inspector will check that a copy of the relevant award is available to workers at the workplace and that pay slips are given to all workers. A check on minimum rates of pay will also be conducted. These initial inspections usually take approximately 20 minutes.

If the boss or manager is not available, the inspector will ask the workers for details of a representative who can speak with authority on employment issues. The boss will be advised by the inspector of any action that is to be taken.

At each step of an inspection the OIR officer can help the boss to make sure the correct employment standards are met. This may be through advice on awards and legislation or by providing details on the resources available on the OIR website.

See workplace inspections for more information.

Question: Does OIR have any resources that help employers prepare for an inspector's visit?

Answer: Yes. There are a number of useful publications and other resources available on the OIR website that will help employers to understand how to meet their obligations under the NSW industrial relations laws.

The new Employer's Checklist is particularly useful as it covers some of the major issues that are checked regularly by inspectors when they visit businesses. The checklist is available in English, Chinese, Korean and Vietnamese.

There is a range of other resources on the OIR website, including publications that can be downloaded and printed, audio files and video clips. Many of these are available in community languages as well as English. Visit www.industrialrelations.nsw.gov.au to find out more.

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It can be confusing working out which IR scheme you are working under and what kind of agreement covers your pay and conditions. If you need more information or help the OIR provides a range of services to help both employees and employers with their rights and obligations under the NSW State system. Information is also available for young people under 18 working for employers in either the State or federal system.

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