No Happy Meals available for hundreds of young workers, with several Brisbane McDonald’s outlets threatening employees with no toilet or water breaks because they asked to take a 10 minute break they’re entitled to.
Tantex Holdings owns and operates six McDonald’s stores in Brisbane and is one of the fast food giant’s biggest franchisees.
A manager from the major franchisee sent a message through a private Facebook group, which has since been leaked. It has enraged the union and sparked a plan to protest.
The message was a reply to a request from the union to allow employees to take the 10 minute break every 4 hours, which some employees from Tantex Holdings had asked for.
The message says, “I hope to God you don’t get thirsty on your next shift because we just wouldn’t be able to allow a drink,” and went on further to state, “If we implement this … this 10-minute break would be the only time you would ever be permitted to have a drink or go to the toilet.”
The manager wrote that most of the McDonald’s crew would not qualify for the paid break given that most of the employees work just below 4 hours, and that banning them from taking breaks would be reasonable as “fair is fair.”
Tantex Holdings is operated by Tanya Manteit-Mulchahy and her husband Terry Mulchahy, together they own McDonald’s franchises as Central Station, the Myer Centre, Queen Street Mall, Wintergarden, McWhirters and Windsor West in Brisbane.
The 10-minute paid breaks are part of an existing workplace agreement and McDonald’s franchisees have faced pressure from the Fast Food Workers Union to pass on the entitlement. Following the leaked message, the union fired back and organised a protest outside the company’s Queen Street Mall outlet – said to be the largest in the Southern Hemisphere.
The union said, “We’re not having a bar of it. This is how McDonald’s treats young workers far too often. It’s time for McDonald’s Australia took responsibility for the way (the country’s) youngest workers are being exploited in their outlets.”
A spokesperson from McDonald’s Australia said that any employees with concerns about their conditions can contact a “dedicated employee assistance hotline.”
For more information on your specific award and it’s entitlements continue reading on the Fair Work website – here.
Source: News.com
Australian summers are hot – extremely hot – so what happens if staff need to be sent home due to extreme weather conditions?
Whether an employee is entitled to a full days pay when they are unable to be ‘usefully’ employed due to factors outside an employer’s control is subject to the award, enterprise agreement, or contract of employment. As such, a modern award may provide payment where the employee is unable to perform work due to factors such as the weather.
Outsourcing payroll to a managed payroll service such as PaysOnline ensures that you’re fulfilling your obligations as an employer and gives you access to several tools that will benefit your business.
Flexibility arrangements – modern awards
All modern awards include a flexibility term enabling an employer, individual employees, and/or a majority of employees in a particular enterprise to amend terms of the award through a ‘flexibility arrangement’, providing the employee is not disadvantaged in comparison to the award.
If, in the absence of a flexibility arrangement, there may be a provision in the award to ensure that a degree of flexibility is obtained. Alternatives to working may include – a bank of rostered days off, time off in lieu of overtime, offering access to forms of paid leave such as annual leave or long service leave.
According to an article published by Marshall & Burn (2018), over the past four years to July 2016 in New South Wales there were 504 workers compensation claims for heat stroke, fatigue and skin cancer costing more than 7 million dollars. There are several other health and safety issues that come along with working in the heat including possible fatigue, feeling physically weak, slower reaction times and poor judgement (2018).
According to WHS Regulation 2017, there is no precise temperature – hot or cold – where employees should stop working. However, employers have a duty of care to ensure that their employees are working without risk.
You can find out more information on your award over on the Fair Work website – here
For more information on outsourcing payroll to PaysOnline contact us today for a quick quote!
Following a recent Fair Work Commission decision, from the 1 August 2018 employees under an industry or occupation award will be eligible to take five (5) days unpaid leave to deal with family and domestic violence issues.
All industry and occupation awards will be updated shortly to include the new clause, which allows employees (including casuals) to take unpaid leave to deal with family and domestic violence issues if required and it is impractical to do so outside their ordinary hours of work.
Whilst most employees will have access to this leave, those who fall under an Enterprise Award or State reference public sector award are not able to apply for this leave. However, they may be entitled to other paid or unpaid entitlements under their award to access for these such circumstances.
Employees are entitled to the full 5 days of leave from the day they begin employment as it does not build up over time. The 5 days renew after every 12 months but doesn’t accumulate from year to year if unused.
If, in the instance that a business provides paid or unpaid family and domestic violence leave to employees through a signed contract and the amount stated is less than the new minimum, then the amount in the updated award will apply.
An employer may request evidence which demonstrates that the employee took the leave to deal with issues arisen from family and domestic violence. Types of evidence can include:
Due to the sensitive nature surrounding the leave, employers should be aware that information regarding an employee’s experience of family or domestic violence is confidential and, if handled poorly, could result in adverse consequences for the employee. Furthermore, it may be necessary to review how business’ record the leave on pay slips and timesheets.
You can read more about the new Family and Domestic Violence leave on the Fair Work Commission website – here
The Queensland Government’s Industrial Relations Act 2016 offers ten (10) days of paid domestic and family violence leave to employees – here.
Enterprise Awards and State Reference Public Sector Awards – here
On Friday 1 June 2018, the Fair Work Commission increased the national minimum wage by 3.5 per cent from $694.90 to $719.20 per week. The change applies to employees that get their pay rates from the national minimum wage, a modern award or in some cases a registered agreement. If you’re not sure which award applies to your employees you can use Find my award on the Fair Work website. PaysOnline’s managed payroll solution can help mitigate compliance issues, keep reading to find out how we can assist you.
The increased pay rate will apply to base rates of pay from the first full pay period starting on or after 1 July 2018. Once Fair Work releases the new rates for each award we will update them in the PaysOnline system.
PaysOnline managed payroll can assist in ensuring that you correctly pay your employees against their respective award classification. To easily manage the increase in employee wages, PaysOnline have two tools available for you to use – Pay Rate Admin and the Pay Rate Validation. Both tools allow you to see what rates you’re currently paying and whether any changes should be applied.
Applying the new pay rates is easy and there is no need to update employees individually. PaysOnline’s pay tools allow you to perform bulk updates for employees with just a few clicks, freeing up time for you to spend on more important things. Users simply choose the award and classification and apply the prescribed rates to each employee.
PaysOnline managed payroll solution helps take the stress out of payroll. Contact PaysOnline today for a customised solution!
Privacy and the access of sensitive information has been highly topical recently particularly in regards to the Facebook and Cambridge Analytica scandal, which has been making headlines worldwide.
As technology progresses, the use of biometric time keeping has become increasingly popular within the workforce as employers move to streamline business procedures. As citizens living and consuming within a technological environment, we are becoming more aware than ever about how data is stored, accessed, and handled, and perhaps even a little suspicious as to how our own data is being used.
Easy-to-use and cost effective – it is clear why many businesses are making the switch to biometric time and attendance systems. Despite this, a change of any internal procedure can cause concern among staff and with the addition of biometric data it is only natural to have a few questions. Below we have answered a few common queries related to biometric fingerprint scanners and how the information is stored.
A common concern of biometric terminal use is whether fingerprints are stored or not, and if access to this data could potentially lead to fraudulent activity. Rather than storing an image of an employee’s fingerprint the data is converted and recorded as a binary file (binary files are usually thought of as being a sequence of bytes, which means the binary digits (bits) grouped in eights). Each time an employee subsequently scans their fingerprint to clock in or out, the information is transferred as an algorithm and compared to the stored binary file. The data recorded in the system cannot be converted into a usable representation of the fingerprint so you can rest assured that the enrolment data will not put your personal details at risk of a breach.
We’ve all seen the films depicting thieves or spies who could seemingly break into rooms by fooling biometric systems. Whilst older systems could – and in some cases – be manipulated, modern biometric systems are able to distinguish between human flesh and other organic or synthetic materials. Modern multispectral imaging also records the structure of the fingerprint, dictating the external ridges. This means that the the internal details are compared to the print itself ensuring a correct matches.
Whilst you may be sold on the idea of implementing biometric systems into your business, your employees may not be completely comfortable. Keeping staff informed can assist in removing any concerns they may have, along with an explanation on why you intend on implementing the biometric terminals.
PaysOnline’s Biometric Time and Attendance solution is easy-to-use and cost effective. With a choice between three different terminals – fingerprint scanner, palm scanner or facial scanner – you’re sure to find a fit for your business. Request a meeting with one of our specialists to explore the PaysOnline solution.
You can find more information on our Privacy Policy here and our Data Breach Policy here
In an attempt to better support apprentices in completing their trade commencements, the Australian government has introduced a new incentive called the Trade Support Loan (TSL).
The need for this assistance became clear when research found that the number of trainees starting a placement far outweighed the completion figures.
Trade Support Loans can be granted to eligible applicants in instalments totalling up to $20,000 as an income contingent loan over the course of an Australian Apprenticeship. These loans are intended to assist with everyday costs incurred during an apprenticeship and paid according to the candidate’s needs.
The total sum of the loan will eventually be paid back upon completion of the apprenticeship via the individual’s tax, similar to a HELP debt when they reach the same thresholds.
If you would like further information about the Trade Support Loan, please visit:
Source: Australian Apprenticeships
