A Look at the New IR Bill

Last week was an interesting week with the announcement of the Federal Budget for 2022/2023 and the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill being introduced to parliament on Thursday.

I don’t intend to explain all the elements of the bill; but I do want to prompt you to start thinking about the possible effect that may flow to your business.  The most significant of these is the Multi-Employer Bargaining.  This will allow employees engaged by different employers to take industrial action as one group with union assistance to gain an industry wide outcome.

It is not hard to see that this aspect of the bill could result in businesses impacted by industrial action and forced into agreements they don’t want.

Businesses not involved in the Multi-Employer Bargaining will be affected by these outcomes if, for example, they compete for similar labour. The pressure to meet the higher wages and conditions will bring yet another challenge to businesses.  Don’t forget we are still facing a skills shortage so businesses that are recruiting are already struggling to find staff.

Some time ago I wrote about the difficulty employers will face if employees make application for flexible work hours or conditions.  I will spare you the detail of that report but will relate this back to the Bill which will allow employees to challenge their employer through Fair Work if their request for Flexible Work Arrangements is not met. The bill will place a legal obligation on the employer to reach agreement.  This change is designed to improve workplace relations by ensuring employers try to meet the employee request.

The bill has already met with strong and different reactions from the two sides of the industrial arena.  So, what can all this mean for businesses, particularly small to medium sized as well as those that don’t have unions:

Well, the answer is the same as it has always been; build your relationships with your employees so that they are committed engaged and loyal to you and your business. Lack of engagement is resulting in the next new trend of Quiet Quitting. Complacent employees who are working from home and doing it easily, these employees need to be reengaged.

Consider revisiting your Employee Value Proposition

For those who haven’t read about my thoughts on this before I will quickly summarise.

You already know or should know who the key employees are in your organisation. Your EVP is usually targeted to all employees but can be individualised.  

This could be as simple as looking at what training and career opportunities you can provide, consider what flexible working arrangements you can offer (this can be done I have seen it happen in an industry you would never think possible!).  With the changes announced this week employers are going to struggle to say no to any requests. 

Now more than ever, you need to give your employees a reason to stay and more importantly show up to work engaged with the work and the business.  This may not remove the need for salary increases but it might mean your employees are less likely to be “Quiet Quitting”. 

Revisiting your EVP will also have a significant benefit to your business with your Recruitment strategy.  No longer are employers in control of who they want to employ, the focus is now on “what can a business offer an employee”.

Start implementing a “Reflective Recognition Culture”

With many businesses still remote/hybrid working you may not always see all the work your employees do every day it is therefore important to encourage people to share what they are proud of and why. 

This might be hard at first but if you build into your one on one’s people will eventually come ready to share and it just may help build a culture of where good work is recognised and celebrated.  This helps to create self-belief and have employees feel valued.

I believe employee engagement is one of the keys to business success so if you would like to have a “No obligation” chat to discuss your HR needs and how you might implement a Employee Engagement Program please send an email to paiget@avenue2hr.com.au or even book in a time with me using the link below. I’m always happy to discuss a topic I am very passionate about.

https://calendly.com/avenue2hr/introductory-call

Thanks for reading

Paige