The Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ACCI) says new workplace rules that came into effect last week are complex and will impose another layer of regulation on businesses, especially small businesses.
The changes include:
* the right for employees to disconnect
* a new definition of casual employees
* a new definition of an employee versus an independent contractor
* new standards for the gig economy and the road transport industry
ACCI CEO Andrew McKellar says businesses are already “doing it tough” and these changes create more uncertainty and confusion.
“Our recent poll found that almost half of small business owners considered closing in the past 12 months. These changes could be enough to send them to the wall.”
The most controversial of these changes is the ‘right to disconnect’ law. This legislation gives employees the right to refuse to monitor, read or respond to contact or attempted contact from an employer or a third party outside work hours unless that refusal is unreasonable.
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