Employment and Work Health & Safety

Overview

In a rapidly changing global economy and complex legal area, achieving your commercial objectives and protecting your reputation depends on careful, well-informed risk management of employment practices, workplace behaviours and work health and safety.

Every business is different.

Tailored pragmatic advice in the Employment and Work Health and Safety areas provide astute businesses with a significant competitive advantage through increased productivity and reduced risk of future damaging issues.

Broadley Rees Hogan’s independently recognised Employment & Work Health & Safety team has substantial experience in discreetly advising major employers across a wide variety of industries, including:

• Building and construction
• Education
• Energy and resources
• Franchising
• Health and life sciences
• Hospitality and catering
• Financial services
• Property development and management
• Manufacturing
• Professional services

However, we take the time to know your business, because it is essential to what we do.
Our ultimate goal is to maximise your competitive advantage by assisting you to minimise employment and work health and safety risk.
Some of the services we provide include:

Employment

• Preparing and negotiating all employment related agreements including:
  •     Award; salaried and executive employment contracts
  •     Consultancy / contractor agreements
  •     Retention agreements
  •     Settlement agreements
• Advising on human resources processes and procedures in relation to:
  • Recruitment
  • Performance appraisal
  • Performance management
  • Discipline
  • Corporate restructuring
  • Redundancies
• Advising on issues of executive remuneration, including:
  • Remuneration structuring
  • Equity incentive arrangements
  • Termination benefits
  • Shareholder approval requirements
• Conducting risk management compliance audits relating to, amongst other things:
  • National Employment Standards
  • Payroll record keeping
  • Award, enterprise agreement and contractual compliance
• Advising on and representing in relation to termination of employment, including:
  • Dismissal as a result of poor performance, misconduct or redundancy
  • Contractual and statutory obligations
  • Notice and termination payments
  • Corporations Act  limits on termination payments for employees

Industrial Relations

• Planning, negotiation, drafting and implementation of enterprise agreements
• Advising in relation to consultation obligations in relation to workplace change, including corporate restructures and the implementation of workplace policies and procedures
• Providing advice relating to effective strategies to minimise the risk of workplace disputes and industrial action, as well as advising on actual industrial disputation (including strikes, lockouts, pickets and other forms of industrial action) across a wide range of industries
• Acting in relation to obligations towards employee representatives in relation to freedom of association, right of entry laws, bargaining and disputes

Workplace Behaviour

• Providing advice in relation to compliance with obligations relating to discrimination and harassment on all prohibited grounds including:
  • Race
  • Religion
  • Sex
  • Family and parental responsibilities
  • Disability
  • Criminal record
• Strategic advice in relation employee behaviour that has the potential adversely impact the workplace (both at work and outside of working hours), including management of social media, assault and defamation
• Developing and assisting in the implementation of internal workplace behaviour policies and procedures
• Assisting clients with the investigation and resolution of workplace grievances and disputes
• Representation and defence of discrimination, harassment, sexual harassment, vilification and victimisation claims in all relevant tribunals and courts

Workplace investigations

Conducting external independent audits and investigations in the areas including:

• Bullying
• Discrimination & harassment
• Employee fraud
• WHS incident response
• Grievances & disputes
• Misconduct
• Workplace behaviour issues

Work Health & Safety

• Conducting compliance audits
• Developing and implementing risk management strategies and procedures into workplaces, including unionised workplaces
• Providing strategic advice on a range of safety issues, including:
  • In relation to the management of injured and ill employees
  • Rehabilitation and return to work programs
  • Drug and alcohol policies and testing
  • Director, manager and employee compliance exposure
• Developing and assisting clients in the implementation of critical response and defence strategies in relation to major safety incidents
• Conducting and assisting with workplace investigations into safety incidents and complaints, including critical incidents and fatalities in the workplace
• Acting in safety-related prosecutions, litigation and coronial inquests at a federal and state level

Compliance Training

We also conduct training for directors, managers and employees in areas including:

• Recruitment and contract formation
• Responsibilities and compliance obligations arising under privacy laws
• Protection of confidential information
• Post-employment restrictions for key personnel
• Performance management and termination of employment
• Enterprise agreement negotiation for your bargaining team
• Appropriate workplace behaviour (including equal opportunity, diversity, and issues of discrimination, harassment and bullying)
• Management of technology and social media
• Managing injured, ill and absent employees
• Work health and safety
• Complaint handling and grievance procedures
• Conducting workplace investigations
• Separation management and redundancy

Our People

Stuart Rees | Managing Director

For more information, please contact: