The government will make it easier for casuals to convert to full-time work if they choose, in the first taste of Labor’s next stage of industrial relations reforms to be unveiled in coming months.
Casuals who work full-time hours would be able to access leave entitlements and guaranteed hours if they change their employment status, with the government to legislate a new definition of casual work, under the proposal.
“No casual will be forced to become a permanent employee. But for those who desperately want security – and are being rostered as though they were permanent – for the first time, job security will be in sight,” said the workplace relations minister, Tony Burke.
The government’s next tranche of workplace changes, due to be introduced to parliament before the end of the year, will include long-mooted updates to definitions of casual work. In a speech to the Sydney Institute on Monday, Burke will say Labor plans to “close the loophole that leaves people stuck classified as casuals when they actually work permanent regular hours”.
Burke claimed current laws facilitated employers “double dipping – taking all the advantages of a reliable workforce and not providing any of the job security in return. That loophole needs to be closed.”
“That means they work just like permanent employees but don’t get any of the benefits of job security,” the minister will say, according to advance copy of his speech.
“The new government will ensure that eligible casuals who want to become permanent can do so.”
Groups including the Business Council and big employers like Wesfarmers have previously raised concerns about the government flagging such changes, claiming casuals would lose flexibility and extra pay loading if they were forced to convert to permanent employment.
The BCA has already launched advertising campaigns against the looming IR changes, opposing both the “same job same pay” policies for labour hire companies and the casual employment proposals.
Burke maintains no casual will be forced to change their employment status under the changes.
“This is entirely about giving workers more choice. No one will be forced to convert from casual to permanent if they don’t want to,” he will tell the Sydney Institute.
“The conversion will be effective from the date it occurs, without involving backpay.”
“We are keeping much of the existing framework that unions and business groups agree should not change, including existing processes to offer eligible employees permanent work after 12 months.”
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The government does not expect large numbers of the nation’s 850,000 casual employees to convert to full-time work.
On Sky News on Sunday, Burke said the government’s plan would address a high court ruling from 2021 which overturned an earlier federal court ruling that workers on regular rosters should get entitlements like annual leave and sick leave.
“I want to go back to the definition that we all had before two years ago,” he said.
Burke denied such a change would be a major cost to business and ruled out backpay for employees changing their definition, claiming there would be “zero cost to the economy” because casual workers would swap extra loading for leave entitlements as permanent employees.
“There’ll be some people where security is their top priority. We’ve got more people now working multiple jobs than we’ve had at any other time in Australia’s history, and we want those people who really need job security to have a pathway to be able to get it,” he said.
The changes are part of a broader set of reforms to be introduced into parliament later this year, expected after September.
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