Read up on the latest news from McDonald Murholme, including case updates and legal commentary.
By Trent Hancock The recent scores of reports relating to unpaid internships are indicative of the pressures on young people entering the workplace to gain industry experience. There was a survey commissioned by the Federal Department of Employment that revealed more than half of Australia’s young adults have completed unpaid work as part of an internship or job
By Trent Hancock The celebration of Australia Day has become an increasingly contentious issue among Australians, writes McDonald Murholme’s Trent Hancock. Each year the debate around whether our national day should be held on 26 January seems to intensify. What happens though when this debate finds its way into the workplace? While employers might be
A niggling tickle in your throat has developed into something more sinister: you’ve caught that cold, flu or undiagnosed viral thing that has been making its way around your open-plan office. You’ve got to call in sick. Or do you? There’s so much to do and there is nothing stopping you from responding to all
Like in many professional services industries, office romances are “quite common” in law. Lawyers Weekly spoke with a principal lawyer about some of the issues surrounding office romances, and how law firms can navigate such sensitive territory. Romance within law firms can be commonplace, McDonald Murholme principal Andrew Jewell surmised, because lawyers spend a lot
The recent Westpac v Deng decision acts as a warning to the big banks: follow the rules or risk being called out. In a hearing late last year, the Fair Work Commission ruled that Westpac banking employee Kefeng Deng should be reinstated to his original position after he was not afforded procedural fairness into allegations against him.
A manager at a McDonald’s franchise tried to ‘negotiate’ with disgruntled workers on Facebook, and his post went viral. Here’s a breakdown from an HR perspective. A snapshot of a post from a McDonald’s franchise manager, in which he threatens workers with restricted water and toilet breaks, has gone viral. The post is a case study in
Shane Bywater guesses he’s been a referee on over 150 resumes. Most of the time, he considers the task a privilege and an opportunity to help someone out. But every now and again, that privilege becomes “awkward”. “I’ve had people I’ve sacked, or have had to make redundant, ask me to be their reference,” says
It has been a tumultuous weekend for Qantas ahead of the busiest period of the year for airports after the airline came under fire for a program which allows head office workers to volunteer assistance to frontline staff over Christmas. The airline described the program as about “spreading a bit of Christmas cheer”, but the
As of 1 December 2018, the rules around flexible work requests have changed. Experts break down who this hurts and helps, how to reject a request, and why you shouldn’t. A new ruling by the Fair Work Commission means that, as of 1 December 2018, employers need to make a genuine attempt to reach flexible work agreements with their
According to the Australian Bureau of Statistics, one in three women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence, perpetrated by someone known to them. White Ribbon Day acts as a fundraiser to assist those effected, while also spreading awareness about its prevalence, in an effort to prompt action. According to this recent IPSOS survey, domestic violence
The Fair Work Commission has ruled that a gig economy worker is an employee and not a contractor. HRM talks to an expert and looks at the potential fallout. The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has found that a Foodora rider was an employee and not, as the company claimed, a contractor. The worker, Joshua Klooger, made an application for
Hundreds of thousands of workers are being forced to work under conditions that strip them of everything from sick pay to super – but now, they’re fighting back. Liam Kelly, who has worked in the construction industry for more than 30 years, told A Current Affair things had gone downhill a few years ago when he
As of 1st of November, Victorian employee entitlements have changed. Legal experts explain what HR needs to know. The Long Service Leave Act 2018 (Vic) came into effect Thursday 1st November and will introduce significant changes to long service leave (LSL) arrangements in Victoria. The new legislation will impact the entitlements of all Victorian employees who were previously covered by the Long
The Melbourne Cup has run on the first Tuesday of November for more than a century, and workers have been pulling sickies on Monday for almost as long. You can hardly blame people, a four-day weekend to kick off November is enticing, especially towards the tail-end of the year. It all begs the question: why
A QUEENSLAND sawmill worker sacked for refusing to sign in using a fingerprint scanner has lost an unfair dismissal claim despite his employer’s “disturbing” privacy failures. Factory hand Jeremy Lee took his case to the Fair Work Commission in March after being let go from the Superior Wood mill in Imbil, near Gympie, where he
What happens when a culture of transparency is taken to extremes? HRM examines the performance practices at Netflix and whether the company could legally operate in Australia. Organisational transparency is generally considered a good thing for workplace culture. It helps to ensure the right people are recruited and fosters a culture of inclusion and trust.
IS the long lunch a thing of the past? Nearly three quarters of Australian workers are not taking their full designated lunch break, with almost one in 10 skipping lunch breaks altogether, a new survey by Hays has found. The recruitment firm asked 1253 professionals about their lunch habits. Twenty-eight per cent said they take
A top executive at Lego Australia is suing the toy company for more than $400,000 because it allegedly fired him when he returned from an overseas transfer to care for his family. Lego Australia director of operations Robert Csano, who had been seconded to Japan since 2016, accused the family-owned company of discriminating against him
An Australian law firm has opened up on the firing of ABC managing director Michelle Guthrie, saying the dismissal should have lasting consequences for employment law cases going forward. McDonald Murholme has responded to news of Ms Guthrie being terminated from her top job at the ABC earlier this week. The highly publicised dismissal has
The firing of the ABC’s managing director Michelle Guthrie, and the subsequent fallout, has been the story of the week. But beyond the headlines are lessons for HR. The termination of the ABC’s managing director Michelle Guthrie this Monday has grown from what the organisation no doubt hoped would be a relatively quiet decision into
