Division Description Changes — Bills — Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia's Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2021; Consideration of Senate Message — 22nd Mar 2021

Change	Division
representatives vote 2021-03-22#2 Edited by mackay staff on 2021-03-26 09:11:36	Title Bills — Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia's Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2021; Consideration of Senate Message Fair Work Amendment (Supporting Australia's Jobs and Economic Recovery) Bill 2021 - Consideration of Senate Message - Pass bill with amendments Description ~~<p class="speaker">Tony Smith</p>~~ ~~<p>The question now is that the amendments be agreed to.</p>~~ The majority voted to agree with the [Senate amendments](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:legislation/billhome/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fsched%2Fr6653_sched_802e6841-c720-44d5-b02e-2e20bb710a2e%22;rec=0), which means the bill has now passed in this form in both the Senate and the House of Representatives and so will now become law. ### What does this bill do? According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2021a/21bd053): > The Bill’s proposed reforms primarily relate to casual employment, flexibility under modern awards for industries impacted by COVID-19, the making and approval of enterprise bargaining agreements, greenfield agreements for major projects and compliance and enforcement (including responding to wage theft). The Bill’s amendments can be grouped as follows: > > * Schedule 1 makes amendments to insert a definition of casual employment, provide for a casual conversion process and to address issues around ‘double dipping’ with respect to casual loading *> Schedule 2 makes amendments providing that employers covered by identified modern awards can offer additional hours to part-time employees and issue flexible work directions to employees []* > * Schedule 3 makes amendments to the current requirements around enterprise agreements including in relation to the operation of the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT) and agreement approval processes [] > Schedule 4 make amendments to allow eight year greenfields agreement for major projects []* *> Schedule 5 makes amendments in relation to compliance and enforcement including by introducing new penalties and criminalising certain forms of wage theft []* *> Schedule 6 makes amendments in relation to when the FWC [Fair Work Commission] can dismiss applications and vary or revoke its own decisions. []* > * Schedule 7 provides for relevant application, saving and transitional provisions with respect to other parts of the Bill. [*] In the agreed upon Senate amendments, Schedules 2 to 6 were deleted from the bill. This means that the [final form of the bill](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:legislation/billhome/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fbills%2Fr6653_aspassed%2F0000%22;rec=0) only includes Schedules 1 and 7.

~~<p class="speaker">Tony Smith</p>~~
~~<p>The question now is that the amendments be agreed to.</p>~~
The majority voted to agree with the [Senate amendments](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:legislation/billhome/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fsched%2Fr6653_sched_802e6841-c720-44d5-b02e-2e20bb710a2e%22;rec=0), which means the bill has now passed in this form in both the Senate and the House of Representatives and so will now become law.
### What does this bill do?
According to the [bills digest](https://www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Bills_Legislation/bd/bd2021a/21bd053):
> *The Bill’s proposed reforms primarily relate to casual employment, flexibility under modern awards for industries impacted by COVID-19, the making and approval of enterprise bargaining agreements, greenfield agreements for major projects and compliance and enforcement (including responding to wage theft). The Bill’s amendments can be grouped as follows:*
>
> * *Schedule 1 makes amendments to insert a definition of casual employment, provide for a casual conversion process and to address issues around ‘double dipping’ with respect to casual loading*
> * *Schedule 2 makes amendments providing that employers covered by identified modern awards can offer additional hours to part-time employees and issue flexible work directions to employees* [*]
> * *Schedule 3 makes amendments to the current requirements around enterprise agreements including in relation to the operation of the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT) and agreement approval processes* [*]
> * *Schedule 4 make amendments to allow eight year greenfields agreement for major projects* [*]
> * *Schedule 5 makes amendments in relation to compliance and enforcement including by introducing new penalties and criminalising certain forms of wage theft* [*]
> * *Schedule 6 makes amendments in relation to when the FWC [Fair Work Commission] can dismiss applications and vary or revoke its own decisions.* [*]
> * *Schedule 7 provides for relevant application, saving and transitional provisions with respect to other parts of the Bill.*
[*] In the agreed upon Senate amendments, Schedules 2 to 6 were deleted from the bill. This means that the [final form of the bill](https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;query=Id:legislation/billhome/display.w3p;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fbills%2Fr6653_aspassed%2F0000%22;rec=0) only includes Schedules 1 and 7.