A DEWR review of the procedures available for small claims of up to $100,000 recommends legislative change to enable successful applicants to win costs and an automatic exemption from filing fees in some circumstances, while it also canvasses establishing a small claims jurisdiction within the FWC or creating an industrial court.
A lawyer who failed to follow "the most basic of instructions" during FWC proceedings and proved to be "exceptionally difficult to deal with", experienced reasonable management action rather than bullying when DEWR raised issues about his tardiness, falling asleep in meetings and delays in producing work.
A blowout in FEG scheme processing times, a "human-in-the-loop" AI initiative and no gender pay gap among its employees are among the highlights of DEWR's latest annual report, tabled last week.
DEWR secretary Natalie James has defended her department's working from home arrangements and explained why they are different from the newly-passed laws giving employees a right to disconnect out of ordinary hours.
DEWR spent almost $200,000 on external legal and financial advice to rectify about $60,100 in employee underpayments, it told a Senate Estimates hearing yesterday.
The RBA says several new early indicators it has developed in-house are helping it to build a "fuller view" of wage movements ahead of the release of official figures.
New DEWR data has undercut RBA warnings about the risks of a wage-price spiral, indicating that private sector bargained wage growth remains anchored below 4% a year.
Underpaying employers could face fines of more than $4 million or three times the sum involved, while individuals such as directors and HR managers could face imprisonment and penalties up to $825,000 per breach under further wage theft reforms being considered by the Albanese Government.
Fair Work Ombudsman Sandra Parker has confirmed that she will not seek reappointment when her term expires in July, with DEWR now advertising for her replacement.
