Pastoral Employees (State) Award

 

INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS COMMISSION OF NEW SOUTH WALES

 

Review of Award pursuant to Section 19 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996.

 

(No. IRC 1624 of 2007)

 

 

REVIEWED AWARD

 

1.        Insert in numerical order in clause 1, Arrangement of the award published 26 October 2001 (328 I.G. 1188), the following new clause number and subject matter:

 

49A.   Secure Employment

 

2.        Insert after clause 49, Contract of Employment, the following new clause 49A.

 

49A.  Secure Employment

 

(a)      Objective of this Clause

 

The objective of this clause is for the employer to take all reasonable steps to provide its employees who are employed as Station Hands with secure employment by maximising the number of permanent positions in the employer's workforce, in particular by ensuring that casual employees have an opportunity to elect to become full-time or part-time employees.

 

(b)      Application

 

This clause shall only have application to employees who are employed as Station Hands under Section II of this Award. To avoid doubt, this clause does not give any other employee a right to elect to have his or her contract of employment converted to full-time or part-time employment of any kind. Additionally, this clause does not impose any obligations of any kind upon an employer in relation to employees who are employed under Section I of this Award.

 

(c)      Casual Conversion

 

(i)       A casual employee engaged by a particular employer on a regular and systematic basis for a sequence of periods of employment under this Award during a calendar period of twelve months shall thereafter have the right to elect to have his or her ongoing contract of employment converted to permanent full-time employment or part-time employment if the employment is to continue beyond the conversion process prescribed by this subclause.

 

(ii)      Every employer of such a casual employee shall give the employee notice in writing of the provisions of this sub-clause within four weeks of the employee having attained such period of twelve months. However, the employee retains his or her right of election under this subclause if the employer fails to comply with this notice requirement.

 

(iii)      Any casual employee who has a right to elect under paragraph (c)(i), upon receiving notice under paragraph (c)(ii) or after the expiry of the time for giving such notice, may give four weeks' notice in writing to the employer that he or she seeks to elect to convert his or her ongoing contract of employment to full-time or part-time employment, and within four weeks of receiving such notice from the employee, the employer shall consent to or refuse the election, but shall not unreasonably so refuse. Where an employer refuses an election to convert, the reasons for doing so shall be fully stated and discussed with the employee concerned, and a genuine attempt shall be made to reach agreement. Any dispute about a refusal of an election to convert an ongoing contract of employment shall be dealt with as far as practicable and with expedition through the disputes settlement procedure.

 

(iv)     Any casual employee who does not, within four weeks of receiving written notice from the employer, elect to convert his or her ongoing contract of employment to full-time employment or part-time employment will be deemed to have elected against any such conversion.

 

(v)      Once a casual employee has elected to become and been converted to a full-time employee or a part-time employee, the employee may only revert to casual employment by written agreement with the employer.

 

(vi)     If a casual employee has elected to have his or her contract of employment converted to full-time or part-time employment in accordance with paragraph (c)(iii), the employer and employee shall, in accordance with this paragraph, and subject to paragraph (c)(iii), discuss and agree upon:

 

(1)      whether the employee will convert to full-time or part-time employment; and

 

(2)      if it is agreed that the employee will become a part-time employee, the number of hours and the pattern of hours that will be worked either consistent with any other part-time employment provisions of this award or pursuant to a part time work agreement made under Chapter 2, Part 5 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 (NSW);

 

Provided that an employee who has worked on a full-time basis throughout the period of casual employment has the right to elect to convert his or her contract of employment to full-time employment and an employee who has worked on a part-time basis during the period of casual employment has the right to elect to convert his or her contract of employment to part-time employment, on the basis of the same number of hours and times of work as previously worked, unless other arrangements are agreed between the employer and the employee.

 

(vii)     Following an agreement being reached pursuant to paragraph (vi), the employee shall convert to full-time or part-time employment. If there is any dispute about the arrangements to apply to an employee converting from casual employment to full-time or part-time employment, it shall be dealt with as far as practicable and with expedition through the disputes settlement procedure.

 

(viii)    An employee must not be engaged and re-engaged, dismissed or replaced in order to avoid any obligation under this subclause.

 

(d)      Occupational Health and Safety

 

(i)       For the purposes of this subclause, the following definitions shall apply:

 

(1)      A "labour hire business" is a business (whether an organisation, business enterprise, company, partnership, co-operative, sole trader, family trust or unit trust, corporation and/or person) which has as its business function, or one of its business functions, to supply staff employed or engaged by it to another employer for the purpose of such staff performing work or services for that other employer.

 

(2)      A "contract business" is a business (whether an organisation, business enterprise, company, partnership, co-operative, sole trader, family trust or unit trust, corporation and/or person) which is contracted by another employer to provide a specified service or services or to produce a specific outcome or result for that other employer which might otherwise have been carried out by that other employer's own employees.

 

(ii)      Any employer which engages a labour hire business and/or a contract business to perform work wholly or partially on the employer's premises shall do the following (either directly, or through the agency of the labour hire or contract business):

 

(1)      consult with employees of the labour hire business and/or contract business, who are engaged as Station Hands regarding the workplace occupational health and safety consultative arrangements;

 

(2)      provide employees of the labour hire business and/or contract business who are engaged as Station Hands with appropriate occupational health and safety induction training including the appropriate training required for such employees to perform their jobs safely;

 

(3)      provide employees of the labour hire business and/or contract business who are engaged as Station Hands with appropriate personal protective equipment and/or clothing and all safe work method statements that they would otherwise supply to their own employees; and

 

(4)      ensure employees of the labour hire business and/or contract business who are employed as Station Hands are made aware of any risks identified in the workplace and the procedures to control those risks.

 

(iii)      Nothing in this subclause (d) is intended to affect or detract from any obligation or responsibility upon a labour hire business arising under the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2000 or the Workplace Injury Management and Workers Compensation Act 1998.

 

(e)      Disputes Regarding the Application of this Clause

 

Where a dispute arises as to the application or implementation of this clause, the matter shall be dealt with pursuant to the disputes settlement procedure of this award.

 

(f)       This clause has no application in respect of organisations which are properly registered as Group Training Organisations under the Apprenticeship and Traineeship Act 2001 (or equivalent interstate legislation) and are deemed by the relevant State Training Authority to comply with the national standards for Group Training Organisations established by the ANTA Ministerial Council.

 

3.        Delete clause 76 Area, Incidence and Duration, and insert in lieu thereof the following:

 

76.  Area, Incidence and Duration

 

This award is made following a review under section 19 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 and replaces the Pastoral Employees (State) Award published 26 October 2001 (328 I.G. 1188) and all variations thereof.

 

The award published 26 October 2001 took effect on and from the first full pay period commencing on or after 27 July 2001.

 

The award shall apply to all employees classified herein within the jurisdiction of the Pastoral Employees (State) Industrial Committee except:

 

(i)       employees of the Crown;

 

(ii)       jackeroos;

 

(iii)      managers, overseers, engine drivers at shearing sheds, hutkeepers, bookkeepers, domestic cooks (as defined);

 

(iv)      bona fide students of a recognised university or college who work as station hands during the course of their studies to gain experience in the industry.

 

Provided that this award shall apply to students engaged as shed hands or generally useful hands for shearing or crutching operations.

 

This award shall not apply to shearing demonstrations or shearing schools, provided that such demonstrations or schools are conducted on a non-profit making basis.

 

This award shall also apply to employees classified herein within the jurisdiction of the Strappers, Grooms and Stablehands (State) Industrial Committee.

 

The changes made to the award pursuant to the Award Review under section 19(6) of the Industrial Relations Act 1996 and Principle 26 of the Principles for Review of Awards made by the Industrial Relations Commission of the New South Wales on 28 April 1999 (310 I.G. 359) take effect on 30 May 2008.

 

This award remains in force until varied or rescinded, the period for which it was made already having expired.

 

 

 

A. MACDONALD, Commissioner

 

 

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Printed by the authority of the Industrial Registrar.