Blurred lines: the legal status and rights of volunteers

The line between volunteer and employee can become blurred. Notwithstanding a lack of employment protections, volunteers retain some workplace rights. By JOHN WILSON and KIERAN…

Directors take note: employees can recover unpaid entitlements directly from you

Under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), unpaid employee entitlements can be recovered from the employer and, in appropriate cases, from a director or other…

Enforcing post-employment restraints after an employer’s breach of contract

Whether post-employment restraints will be enforceable after termination can be an important issue where a senior employee is deciding whether to leave in the face…

Intern or employee? A potentially explosive question

The Fair Work Ombudsman has highlighted the financial risk of utilising unpaid interns in a capacity which gives rise to an employment relationship. By JOHN…

Not just an innocent bystander: accessorial liability of third parties under the Fair Work Act

The reach of the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) accessorial liability provisions may be broad. By GLENN FREDERICKS.

Accessories personally liable for unpaid employee entitlements

High Court confirms knowing participant in a breach of fiduciary duty is liable to account for any benefit gained as a result. By KATE BOYD.

Executive employment claims: a contractual perspective

Contractual principles of incorporation sit uneasily with many employment benefits. Instead, there is an increasing openness on the part of the courts to imply a…

The casual conundrum: casual employment in the Fair Work world

The Fair Work Act’s provisions pertaining to long-term casuals are giving rise to curious outcomes, with casuals receiving conflicting and sometimes arbitrarily determined employment benefits…

A day in the life of… Jon Wright

Jon Wright has a thick wooden door between his office and the stairs to his home above. With three children under the age of four…

The latest from the High Court: March 2016

Reporting and analysis of the latest key judgments from the High Court of Australia. By ANDREW YUILE.