Trade Commissioners Regulations (Amendment)

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Statutory Rules

1979 No. 86

REGULATIONS UNDER THE TRADE COMMISSIONERS ACT 19331

I, THE GOVERNOR-GENERAL of the Commonwealth of Australia, acting with the advice of the Federal Executive Council, hereby make the following Regulations under the Trade Commissioners Act 1933.

Dated this thirty-first day of May 1979.

ZELMAN COWEN

Governor-General

By His Excellency's Command,

J. D. ANTHONY

Minister of State for Trade and Resources

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AMENDMENTS OF THE TRADE COMMISSIONERS REGULATIONS2

1. After regulation 37 of the Trade Commissioners Regulations the following regulation is added:

Higher duties allowance

"38. (1) Where a Commissioner is absent from duty or his post, the Minister may by instrument in writing direct a Commissioner having a lower designation to perform temporarily the whole of the duties of the absent Commissioner or the part of those duties the absent Commissioner is, by reason of his absence, unable to perform.

"(2) Where a Commissioner who is given a direction by the Minister under sub-regulation (1) performs, for a period of not less than 1 week, the duties that he is directed to perform, he shall be paid, in respect of the performance of those duties, an allowance at the appropriate rate.

"(3) For the purpose of sub-regulation (2), the appropriate rate is a rate equal to the difference between the rate of the Commissioner's annual salary and—

(a) the rate of salary for the next higher designation to his; or

(b) where a salary range exists in respect of the next higher designation to his—subject to sub-regulations (4) and (5), the lower or lowest rate in that salary range.

"(4) Where a Commissioner given a direction by the Minister under sub-regulation (1) performs the duties he is directed to perform for a continuous period of more than 12 months after the date on which he


first commenced to perform those duties, he may, after the completion of each such continuous period of 12 months, be granted an increment of allowance of the same amount as would be payable as increment of salary to a Commissioner having the same designation as the Commissioner whose duties he is performing.

"(5) Where a Commissioner given a direction by the Minister under sub-regulation (1) performs those duties which he is directed to perform for periods that are not continuous, but aggregate in the total a period of more than 12 months, he may, at the completion of each total period of 12 months, be granted an increment of allowance of the same amount as is payable as increment of salary to a Commissioner having the same designation as the Commissioner whose duties he is performing, if—

(a) in the case of the first increment—the total period of 12 months' performance of higher duties is completed within a period of 24 months; and

(b) in the case of any subsequent increment—the total requisite period of performance of higher duties is completed within a period of 24 months and the Commissioner has been paid the immediately preceding increment for a period of, or for periods totalling, 12 months.

"(6) For the purposes of sub-regulations (4) and (5), performance of the whole or part of the duties of more than one absent Commissioner shall be considered as the performance of the whole or part of the duties of a single Commissioner.

"(7) For the purpose of determining the date from which an increment of allowance is payable under this regulation, and for the purpose of determining whether the performance of the duties, or part of the duties, of a Commissioner having a higher designation has been for a continuous period, a Commissioner who performs those duties, in whole or in part, immediately before his absence from duty on—

(a) a public holiday;

(b) leave of absence for recreation;

(c) sick leave not exceeding the periods specified in sub-regulation (8);

(d) other authorized leave not exceeding in all 6 days in any 12 months; or

(e) subject to sub-regulation (9), long service leave or furlough, shall be deemed to have performed the duties of a Commissioner having a higher designation during his own absence if he resumes the performance of those duties immediately after that absence.


"(8) For the purpose of sub-regulation (7), sick leave means only sick leave that is granted for the following periods:

(a) leave not exceeding 2 weeks granted during the first period of 12 months' service, either continuous or in broken periods in the higher office;

(b) leave not exceeding 4 weeks granted during the second period of 12 months' service, either continuous or in broken periods, in the higher office, less any period of leave not exceeding 2 weeks, granted during the first period of 12 months' service in the higher office; and

(c) leave granted in any subsequent period of 12 months' service in the higher office not exceeding a period calculated on the basis of 2 weeks' leave for each completed period of 12 months' service in the higher office, less any period of leave granted during previous service in the higher office.

"(9) A Commissioner who was receiving an allowance under this regulation immediately before his absence from duty on long service leave granted under the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Act 1976 or furlough granted under the Public Service Act 1922 shall be deemed to have performed the duties of a Commissioner of a higher designation during his own absence only if the salary payable to him in respect of the period of absence included, by reason of the Long Service Leave (Commonwealth Employees) Regulations or the Public Service Regulations, an allowance in respect of the performance of the duties of a Commissioner having a higher designation.

"(10) An allowance payable under sub-regulation (2) shall be deemed to be salary for the purpose of assessment of—

(a) the rate of payment of local allowance, travelling allowance and rent allowance; and

(b) the rate of rental contributions by the Commissioner.''.

Schedule

2. The Schedule to the Trade Commissioners Regulations is amended by omitting the heading " SCHEDULE 2 " and all words and figures between that heading and the heading " SCHEDULE 4 ".

 

NOTES

1. Notified in the Commonwealth of Australia Gazette on 7 June 1979.

2. Statutory Rules 1958 No. 52 as amended to date. For previous amendments see Note 2 to Statutory Rules 1979 No. 12 and see also Statutory Rules 1979 Nos. 12 and 38.

Overview

Statutory Rules 1979 No. 86, enacted under the Trade Commissioners Act 1933, was introduced to amend the Trade Commissioners Regulations, addressing the need for flexibility and clarity in the temporary assignment of duties when a Commissioner is absent from their post. The Regulations were made by the Governor-General, acting on the advice of the Federal Executive Council, and aim to provide a structured process for the temporary assignment of duties to other Commissioners and the associated allowances. The primary policy objective of these regulations is to ensure that the operational continuity of the Trade Commissioner service is maintained even in the absence of designated personnel, by clearly defining the conditions under which temporary duty assignments are made and the allowances that are applicable to such assignments.

Scope and Application

The Trade Commissioners Regulations 1979, made under the Trade Commissioners Act 1933, apply to Commissioners of Trade within the Commonwealth of Australia, governing their duties and allowances. These regulations specifically address situations where a Commissioner is absent from duty, allowing for the temporary assignment of duties to another Commissioner with a lower designation. The allowances provided for these temporary assignments are calculated based on the difference between the salary rates of the absent Commissioner and the temporarily assigned Commissioner, with provisions for increments after specified periods of service. The regulations also outline specific conditions under which certain types of leave do not interrupt the continuous period of service for the purposes of calculating allowances. These regulations have a national reach, applying across all states and territories within the Commonwealth, and they extend to allow for adjustments and further specifications through subordinate instruments. There are no stated exclusions or thresholds within these regulations themselves, but allowances and conditions for service are strictly defined to ensure clarity and consistency in application.

Key Provisions

The Trade Commissioners Regulations (1979) include several key provisions under the Trade Commissioners Act 1933. Regulation 38, specifically, deals with the temporary assignment of duties to a Commissioner with a lower designation when a Commissioner is absent from their duties. According to section 38(1), the Minister can direct a lower-ranked Commissioner to perform the duties of an absent Commissioner for a period of at least one week, during which they will receive an allowance. This allowance is calculated based on the difference between the absent Commissioner's salary and the salary of the next higher designation, as detailed in section 38(3). The Regulations impose specific obligations on the parties involved. According to section 38(2), a Commissioner who is assigned higher duties must be compensated with an allowance for the duration of their performance of these duties. Additionally, section 38(4) and 38(5) state that if the Commissioner continues to perform these higher duties for periods that aggregate to more than 12 months, they may be eligible for increments in their allowance. These increments are determined by the same criteria as salary increments for a Commissioner of the same designation. Breaching the provisions of these Regulations can lead to various civil or administrative consequences. While specific offences and penalties are not explicitly detailed in the Regulations, any failure to comply with the Minister's direction under section 38(1) or any misapplication of the allowance under section 38(2) could potentially result in disciplinary actions or financial penalties. These actions would be in line with the general enforcement mechanisms available under the Trade Commissioners Act 1933, although the exact penalties are not stipulated in this particular legislative instrument.

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