Last night, the Fair Work Commission granted a joint Australian Hotels Association and United Workers Union application to insert a COVID-19 flexibility schedule in the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2010 (Award), which will operate from 24 March 2020 until 30 June 2020, with a possible extension upon application.
This allows employers flexibility to have their Award covered employees work across various Award classifications and duties during this time, providing they have the correct qualifications.
The variation to the Award also:
- allows full-time employees to work an average of 22.8 to 38 ordinary hours per week, as directed by their employer;
- allows part-time workers to work an average 60% of their weekly hours, as directed by their employer;
- permits employers to direct employees to take annual leave upon 24 hours’ notice; and
- allows employers and employees to agree to take twice the duration of annual leave at half the rate of pay.
For more information on this Award variation, including how it may interact with any enterprise agreement which applies to your business, please contact a member of our Workplace Relations team.
In case you missed it, we have also produced a Coronavirus (COVID-19) FAQs for Employers to assist with managing your workforce during this time.
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