Australian Workplace Agreements - Younger Employees

By Author: James Mark
Total Articles: 13
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Introduction:
This article will be useful reading for all employers of younger workers as well as parents / guardians of such employees and the employees themselves.

Australian Workplace Agreements are in force for an ever increasing number of individuals. While the employer can choose to opt out of a workplace agreement, and simply choose a general agreement, governed by common law principles rather than statue, many do not. There are special rules for employing younger employees on AWAs. This article explains the law so you stay the right side of it.

Written adult consent:
Just like any contract, signing it means accepting the terms within in. However, if the employee is under 18 years of age, his or her AWA must also be countersigned by an appropriate person (such as a parent or guardian - of course this can't be the employer who is party to the AWA). If the AWA is not countersigned by an appropriate adult, the requirements for approval will not have been met. This has the effect of there being no contract.

Bargaining agents:
Any employee is able to appoint a bargaining ...
... agent to help them to negotiate an AWA. Of course the younger the employee, the more sensible it is to appoint a bargaining agent. Anyone may be a bargaining agent as long as they meet certain requirements which are that they must not be:
Under 18 years of age;
Acting for the other party to the AWA;
Bankrupt; or
Convicted of certain criminal offences.

Thus, the bargaining agent could be a parent, family member, friend, trade union representative or any other person. To be a valid agent, the employee must appoint the bargaining agent in writing and give a copy of the appointment document to the employer before agreement negotiations begin.

Of course while a bargaining agent may be useful, it is unlikely that a contract for an under 18 will be significantly complex enough to warrant calculated negotiations on behalf of either party, however, it is useful for the younger employee if the bargaining agent thoroughly reads through the contract to ensure that all the terms seem fair and reasonable.

An employee cannot be sacked for refusing to negotiate, make, sign, extend, vary or terminate an AWA.

Unlawful termination:
The unlawful termination provisions of the Workplace Relations Act prohibit dismissal on a range of grounds including age. Thus, an employee cannot be dismissed because the employer thinks they are too young (or too old).

Unlawful termination (which is different from unfair dismissal) applies to all employees in Australia, irrespective of the size and type of the business.

Remuneration for younger employees:
The Australian Fair Pay Commission (Fair Pay Commission) is responsible for setting and adjusting minimum wages, including minimum wages for juniors.

The Fair Pay Commission must have regard to ensuring that junior employees are ‘competitive in the labour market' when setting and adjusting their minimum wages.

The Fair Pay Commission will also be able to determine one or more special Federal Minimum Wages (special FMWs) for particular groups of junior employees.
As the rates change annually, we have not specified them here.

Assistance:
The Office of the Employment Advocate (OEA) provides a free service for employees to explain the contents of workplace agreements and AWAs. The OEA takes into account the circumstances of the particular employees, thus, if they are young, they will explain the terms of the AWA so that the employee can easily understand their responsibilities and rights.

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