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ARA calls for greater flexibility in averaging work hours

National Employment Standards submission adds recommendations for retailers

Association (ARA) has formally responded to the Australian Government’s National Employment Standards Exposure Draft today by calling for employers to be able to have greater flexibility when rostering workers.

According to Executive Director Richard Evans, the ARA’s submission to the draft National Employment Standards will bring greater certainty and consistency to the retail sector balanced by the need for flexibility in a competitive marketplace.

“The Australian consumer demands retailers provide a seven day a week service with extended trading hours. Coupled with seasonal influences, this places pressure to establish a work hour regime providing certainty to the employee and guaranteed labour supply for the employer,” Evans said.

The ARA’s submission specifically highlights those aspects of the National Employment Standards (NES) directly impacting the retail sector and its operations. This includes recommendations on maximum weekly hours, parental leave, annual leave and personal / carer’s leave and compassionate leave.
The ARA’s National Director Employee Relations Phil Barresi said key elements of their submission argue that:

• many employees are not covered by awards or registered workplace agreements and to have wages prescribed only by such instruments is insufficient and that the omission of such a provision in the NES has potentially far-reaching consequences;
• the inclusion of a minimum wage in the NES would obviate the need for separate jurisdictional decisions by State-based Industrial Relations Commissions; and
• a possible consequence of omitting minimum wage provisions from the NES is that wages and other conditions contained in modern awards may be extended to traditionally award-free employees.

“The averaging of hours is a critical requirement of flexible employment arrangements in an industry sector increasingly reliant on seasonal and changing.

For over 104 years, the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has been the peak industry body in Australia's $292 billion retail sector which employs over 1.2 million people. As an incorporated employer body under the Workplace Relations Act and with a range of member services including business consulting, policy development, advocacy and education, the ARA promotes and protects over 5000 independent and national retailers throughout Australia. Visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.

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