Litigation & Dispute Resolution

10 07, 2020

Employers Beware! Rossato Judgment a Win-Win for Employees

July 2020 | Jonathan Harris The Full Court of the Federal Court in WorkPac Pty Ltd v Rossato [2020] FCAFC 84 (Rossato) has again confirmed that a ‘casual’ employee who works systematic and regular hours is entitled to the same paid leave entitlements as permanent employees. Facts Between 28 July 2014 and 9 April 2018 Mr. Rossato was a mine-worker employed by recruitment agency WorkPac for companies within the Glencore Group. Between these dates Mr. Rossato was employed under

19 05, 2019

Company Officers, Professional Advisors and Liquidators – a Heads Up!

May 2019 | James Freidman Employee entitlements and the Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) In a liquidation situation, employees of a business are particularly vulnerable as ‘unsecured creditors’. Through the Fair Entitlements Guarantee (FEG) scheme, the Australian Government provides financial assistance to cover certain unpaid employee entitlements to eligible employees who lose their job due to the liquidation or bankruptcy of their employer. The cost of the FEG scheme rose from $70.7 million between 2005 to 2009, to $243.6 million between

25 03, 2019

Genuine Redundancy vs Unfair Dismissal. It Pays to Know the Difference! 

March 2019 | Scott Freidman The recent case of Ken McShane v Port of Newcastle [2019] FWC 177 has restated the general principles applied in determining whether an employee has been let go as a result of a genuine redundancy, or if they were, in fact, unfairly dismissed. This matter was brought to the Fair Work Commission by Mr McShane against the Port of Newcastle (PON) on the 10th of August 2018. Mr McShane alleged the decision of the

18 02, 2019

Risks Posed by Departing Employees: Is Your Business Protected?

February 2019 | Kieran Kelly We have recently been asked to advise several clients in relation to the protections they have in place from former employees who have joined a competitor. The scenario often takes a common form: a trusted senior employee hands in their notice of resignation; the employer discovers or is informed that the former employee is joining a market competitor; and the employer seeks advice in relation to whether they have any protections in place to

20 12, 2018

Attention All: Stay Safe this ‘Silly Season’

December 2018 | Scott Freidman The Christmas and New Year period is a time to enjoy the company of family and friends. However, the 'silly season' can also be a busy time of the year for lawyers. A combination of excessive alcohol consumption, increased traffic and heightened stress levels means clients and their loved ones may find themselves in an accident or otherwise having done something they later regret. Many of you have young adult children, so the information

15 08, 2018

Is your company experiencing financial difficulty?

August 2018 | Scott Freidman There are many reasons why a company might find itself in financial difficulty. Even if your company appears to be running well, it is important to know what to do if things go wrong. Adopting a ‘head-in-the-sand’ approach won’t make things better. How and how quickly a business reacts to periods of financial pressure determines its success and ability to recover. Generally speaking, when a company is experiencing serious financial difficulty, company directors have

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