When running an aged care facility, it is vital to know the Australian employment laws that apply to your employees. This is because aged care facilities are sensitive environments with vulnerable clients. At times, unforeseen circumstances such as injuries can arise, leaving you at risk of compensation claims. Additionally, there are specific requirements that you must meet in order to receive subsidies from the government. This article highlights some key legal considerations regarding managing employees for aged care businesses.
Recruitment and Onboarding
Screening of Key Personnel
Suppose you seek benefits from the Australian Government to provide aged care services. In that case, you will need to satisfy specific terms and conditions concerning recruitment and onboarding of employees.
When engaging an employee, the law requires you to screen workers to confirm they are not disqualified. Essential personnel must not:
- have been convicted of a serious offence;
- be insolvent under administration; or
- be of unsound mind.
National Employment Standards
You must provide employees with a copy of the Fair Work Information Statement that explains the minimum employment conditions before or at a reasonable time after hiring. Some of the entitlements you owe employees, depending on their type of work, include:
- annual leave;
- personal leave;
- carer’s leave; and
- parental leave.
Commencement of Work
Awards and Enterprise Agreements
You can generally pay your employees whatever you want, so long as it is not below award rates.
You can negotiate the terms and conditions of employment through individual contracts or register an enterprise agreement that applies to all employees, so long as the terms of the enterprise agreement ensure that the employees are better off overall in comparison to award rates.
For instance, the Aged Care Award contains minimum pay rates and allowances. It applies in settings such as nursing homes and retirement villages. Some examples of occupations covered by the Aged Care Award include:
- personal care workers;
- cleaners; and
- cooks.
Award coverage usually extends to apprentices, trainees and labour-hire employees.
Work Health and Safety
As an aged care provider, you have an obligation to take reasonable precautions to minimise hazards and risks associated with the workplace. In addition, most states and territories have enacted harmonised laws that set out your responsibilities concerning work health and safety.
The steps to satisfy work health and safety obligations vary based on the size of your business and its resources.
It is essential to consider the likelihood of a hazard and the degree of harm, including psychological harm, that might result from it. A high magnitude of harm calls for a more robust protective response. In aged care, injuries often arise from:
- manually lifting patients;
- handling heavy objects; or
- moving furniture.
To provide facilities free of health and safety incidents, you should provide adequate training and hire qualified staff capable of performing these functions.
Another technique is to conduct a regular safety audit of the workplace and promptly rectify identified risks. Consulting regularly with your staff can provide intelligence to help mitigate threats that could give rise to compensation claims.
Continue reading this article below the formAnti-Discrimination Policies
All aspects of the recruitment, onboarding, discipline, promotion and termination process at your business must be free from discrimination. Discrimination based on protected attributes such as race, age, or sexuality is generally not allowed. For example, you can only take adverse action based on age if age is necessary for the job. Adverse action includes, but is not limited to:
- firing an employee;
- changing an employee’s job to their disadvantage; and
- not hiring someone.
One of the best ways to prevent discrimination in the workplace is to establish transparent processes and criteria for hiring, evaluating, and making career decisions. This ensures that decisions are based on merit rather than personal biases. Education programs for your staff can also help them understand the importance of merit-based choices and the negative impacts of discrimination.
As an employer, it is essential to understand what employment laws have changed and their implications for your business — particularly the changes to the Fair Work Act 2009 through the new Closing the Loopholes legislation.
Another helpful tactic is fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion by recognising staff achievements and appropriate cultural traditions. This can help your employees to feel valued and respected, regardless of their characteristics.
Key Takeaways
It would be best to consider various employment law factors when running an aged care facility. These include rules impacting recruitment, onboarding, work health and safety and equal opportunity to avoid discrimination. Having policies and procedures in place to address each of these will ensure that your business runs smoothly.
If you have any questions about employing staff for your aged care facility, our experienced employment lawyers can assist as part of our LegalVision membership. For a low monthly fee, you will have unlimited access to lawyers to answer your questions and draft and review your documents. Call us today on 1300 544 755 or visit our membership page.
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