MA000120  PR700551
FAIR WORK COMMISSION

DETERMINATION


Fair Work Act 2009

s.156 - 4 yearly review of modern awards

4 yearly review of modern awards—Casual employment and Part-time employment
(AM2014/196 and AM2014/197)

CHILDREN'S SERVICES AWARD 2010
[MA000120]

Children's services

VICE PRESIDENT HATCHER
SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT HAMBERGER
DEPUTY PRESIDENT KOVACIC
DEPUTY PRESIDENT BULL

SYDNEY, 21 SEPTEMBER 2018

4 yearly review of modern awards – Casual employment and Part-time employment – casual conversion – Children's Services Award 2010.

A. Further to the Full Bench decision issued by the Fair Work Commission on 9 August 2018 [[2018] FWCFB 46951, the above award is varied as follows:

1. By inserting clause 10.6 as follows:

10.6 Right to request casual conversion

(a) A person engaged by a particular employer as a regular casual employee may request that their employment be converted to full-time or part-time employment.

(b) A regular casual employee is a casual employee who has in the preceding period of 12 months worked a pattern of hours on an ongoing basis which, without significant adjustment, the employee could continue to perform as a full-time employee or part-time employee under the provisions of this award.

(c) A regular casual employee who has worked equivalent full-time hours over the preceding period of 12 months’ casual employment may request to have their employment converted to full-time employment.

(d) A regular casual employee who has worked less than equivalent full-time hours over the preceding period of 12 months’ casual employment may request to have their employment converted to part-time employment consistent with the pattern of hours previously worked.

(e) Any request under this subclause must be in writing and provided to the employer.

(f) Where a regular casual employee seeks to convert to full-time or part-time employment, the employer may agree to or refuse the request, but the request may only be refused on reasonable grounds and after there has been consultation with the employee.

(g) Reasonable grounds for refusal include that:

(h) For any ground of refusal to be reasonable, it must be based on facts which are known or reasonably foreseeable.

(i) Where the employer refuses a regular casual employee’s request to convert, the employer must provide the casual employee with the employer’s reasons for refusal in writing within 21 days of the request being made. If the employee does not accept the employer’s refusal, this will constitute a dispute that will be dealt with under the dispute resolution procedure in clause 9. Under that procedure, the employee or the employer may refer the matter to the Fair Work Commission if the dispute cannot be resolved at the workplace level.

(j) Where it is agreed that a casual employee will have their employment converted to full-time or part-time employment as provided for in this clause, the employer and employee must discuss and record in writing:

(k) The conversion will take effect from the start of the next pay cycle following such agreement being reached unless otherwise agreed.

(l) Once a casual employee has converted to full-time or part-time employment, the employee may only revert to casual employment with the written agreement of the employer.

(m) A casual employee must not be engaged and re-engaged (which includes a refusal to re-engage), or have their hours reduced or varied, in order to avoid any right or obligation under this clause.

(n) Nothing in this clause obliges a regular casual employee to convert to full-time or part-time employment, nor permits an employer to require a regular casual employee to so convert.

(o) Nothing in this clause requires an employer to increase the hours of a regular casual employee seeking conversion to full-time or part-time employment.

(p) An employer must provide a casual employee, whether a regular casual employee or not, with a copy of the provisions of this subclause within the first 12 months of the employee’s first engagement to perform work. In respect of casual employees already employed as at 1 October 2018, an employer must provide such employees with a copy of the provisions of this subclause by 1 January 2019.

(q) A casual employee’s right to request to convert is not affected if the employer fails to comply with the notice requirements in clause 10.6(p).

2. By updating the table of contents and cross-references accordingly.

B. This determination comes into operation from 1 October 2018. In accordance with s.165(3) of the Fair Work Act 2009 these items do not take effect until the start of the first full pay period on or after 1 October 2018.

scription: Seal of the Fair Work Commission with the member's signature.

VICE PRESIDENT

 1   See also [2017] FWCFB 3541.

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