01_QHA_July_Online

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EMPLOYMENT RELATIONS with Joanna Minchinton
2. EMPLOYEE REQUEST TO CONVERT
NOTE: This section applies to a small business employer.
The new NES also provides a casual employee with a residual right to
request casual conversion to permanent employment:
• an employee of an employer that is not a small business cannot
request to convert in accordance with the NES until after 27
September 2021.
• an employee of a small business employer can make a request in
accordance with the NES before 27 September 2021.
Eligibility to request
A casual employee may request conversion to permanent
employment if the employee meets the following eligibility criteria:
(a) beginning the day employment started, the employee has been
employed by the employer for a period of 12 months; and
(b) during at least the last 6 months of that period, the employee
has worked a regular pattern of hours on an ongoing basis; and
(c) without significant adjustment, the employee could continue to
work as a full‐time employee or a part‐time employee.
and
(i) the employee has not refused an offer made to the employee to
convert in the previous 6 months;
(ii) the employer has not, within the previous 6 months, made an
offer to convert on reasonable grounds;
(iii) the employer has not within the previous 6 months responded
to the employee refusing a previous request; and
(iv) the request is not made during the 21 days period after the
employee’s 12 month anniversary.
Employer obligations resulting from an employee’s request to convert
to permanent employment are detailed in the earlier referred to Fact
Sheet. Members are encouraged to obtain a copy to understand
those obligations.
DISPUTES ABOUT THIS NEW NES
The new NES obligations represent legal obligations for all employers,
regardless of whether an employee is covered by an industrial
instrument, such as the HIGA, or is award free.
It is therefore important to understand what those obligations are,
timeframes associated with those obligations, and to make an
assessment when it is needed. An employee has the option of either
lodging a dispute as per their industrial instrument, or commencing a
small claim proceeding in the magistrates or Federal Circuit Court.
CONTACT US TODAY
P: 07 3221 6999 F: 07 3221 6649
E: er@qha.org.au W: qha.org.au
QHA members seeking more information or wishing to discuss
a specific employment relations matter are encouraged to
contact the Employment Relations Department for a confidential
discussion by calling 07 3221 6999 or emailing er@qha.org.au.