4 yearly review of modern awards – Award stage – Group 2

In the decision titled 4 yearly review of modern awards – Award stage – Group 2, the Fair Work Commission (FWC) addressed technical and drafting issues arising from the 4-yearly review of modern awards as mandated by section 156 of the Fair Work Act 2009. This decision pertains to Group 2 of the awards, which includes several awards such as the Graphic Arts, Printing and Publishing Award 2010, the Health Professionals and Support Services Award 2010, and the Road Transport (Long Distance Operations) Award 2010. The legal issues before the FWC were to determine the appropriate technical and drafting changes to be made in the exposure drafts of these awards, ensuring clarity and consistency while maintaining existing entitlements and avoiding unnecessary complexity.

The FWC deliberated on submissions from various stakeholders, including Ai Group and the Chiropractor’s Association of Australia (CAA), and addressed specific issues such as the definition of 'ordinary hourly rate' in the Graphic Arts Award and the application of overtime rates. The FWC decided to maintain the existing terms for overtime rates, such as 'time and a half', 'double time', and 'double time and a half', to avoid altering employee entitlements and to preserve the compounding effect of penalty rates for shift workers. For the Graphic Arts Award, the FWC proposed to insert a specific definition of 'ordinary hourly rate' and sought further submissions from interested parties to clarify any potential ambiguities. In the Health Professionals Award, the FWC found that the issues raised by the CAA had already been addressed and would not be reconsidered. Regarding the Road Transport (Long Distance Operations) Award, the FWC decided to delete a clause concerning articles of clothing allowance due to unclear rationale.

The FWC concluded that most technical and drafting issues had been resolved, and the remaining issues would either be addressed in separate proceedings or required further submissions from stakeholders. The Commission planned to update the exposure drafts, provide a final opportunity for parties to comment on technical and drafting aspects, and issue a statement on the process for concluding the award stage of the review.