Biz Momentum Blog

Did you know your employees do not have a statutory right to a smoke break in the workplace?

Have you ever added up the cost of the loss of productivity of smoking in your workplace?  You may be very surprised. What seems to be a 10 minute break often rolls into 20 minutes.

Consider doing the following:

• Have a policy that clearly states that smoking is confined to rest breaks and not your time.
• Set out why the policy is in force, (e.g. Health & Safety).
• Specify where employees are allowed to smoke and where they are not. (Different states have different requirements).
• Identify who is responsible for enforcing the policy.
• Outline what the consequences of not complying with the policy are.

For further assistance please contact Biz Momentum. We have clients in all states and territories of Australia and advise some international clients. (T) 61 7 3349 5662 (m) +61 409 002 365

Under Fair Work there is no statutory limit as to how long a verbal or written warning remains valid.
However as a general rule, depending on the severity of the circumstances and the event one to six months is appropriate.
In considering warnings there are some things an employer should consider;

• Ensure the confidentiality of the warning process as being between only those parties that have involvement in the process.

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A “DELIBERATELY dishonest” manager sacked after colluding with his colleagues to defraud his employer has had the manner of his dismissal ruled unreasonable by Fair Work Australia. 

In the latest decision to concern employers, the tribunal found that the employee’s admission that he had taken money from his employer, Kings Transport and Logistics, warranted his termination. 

Fair Work said the employee’s actions were “deliberately dishonest” and he had “conducted himself in a manner fundamentally inconsistent with the basic expectations of an employee”. 

But while the tribunal found the reason for his sacking was valid, it ruled that it was unreasonable because of the way the company had investigated the allegations. 

“The evidence before me indicates that Kings has demonstrated an entirely inconsistent approach to the employees involved in this behaviour,” it said. 

“This could only be described as managerial incompetence”.

The message is clear; conduct procedures and processes professionally.

see www.biz-momentum.com to assistance.

In a decision that should end shock waves through the small business community Australia’s industrial umpire has ruled that a long-term employee who was legitimately sacked for repeated safety breaches must be reinstated and paid compensation because of his poor education and poor job prospects.
In the latest ruling to concern business, Fair Work Australia found the worker had engaged in “relatively serious misconduct”, but ruled the sacking harsh due to his length of service and the fact he was a poorly educated middle-aged family man.

Ensure you make informed decisions and speak with us www.biz-momentum.com  Working Australia wide. (T) 61 7 3349 5662
 

Discrimination is increasingly becoming a favourite method that employees are taking up to seek compensation and redress against employers.

A business was fined $60,000 recently for terminating the employment of 3 people because they were union members.

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Over the last 30 years there has been a deluge of training via information and knowledge transfer.

If we ask ourselves a question how much has training really achieved. In our experience not a lot has changed and problems keep increasing in complexity.

Biz Momentum provide hands on equipping through practical seminar where you learn not just the knowledge or information rather ‘how to’. In this way you can go away and immediately implement these tools into your business.

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One of the most despised people that may inhabit your workplace is the micromanager. Competent people detest these behaviours and will often leave without informing you because they will not put up with this conduct

What is micromanagement; essentially an over preoccupation with detail and minutiae. With an almost fanatical obsessive compulsive manner these people go into intricate detail and call countless and meaningless meetings frustrating people that resulting in nothing tangible accomplished for your business.

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