A Guide to the Casual Employment Changes

That’s right - another change in the HR space! On Monday 26 August 2024, a couple of important updates related to casual employees come into effect.

We’ve got a simple explainer to get you up to speed on what these changes mean for you and your casual workforce.

The first change brings a new definition for casual employees.

What is a casual employee under the new definition?

1. When an employee is casual they need to receive a casual loading or specific casual pay rate (that’s the easy part – no changes here!).
2. Here’s what is changing - the new definition focuses on whether there’s a firm, advanced commitment to ongoing work.

If you’re wondering what that might mean in reality, don’t worry - there’s a few factors that can help you assess whether your employee is a casual under the new definition.

Here are a few things to consider:

• What’s really happening day-to-day. Is there a real commitment to ongoing work, or is it more of a “here when we need you” kind of deal?
• Does your employee have flexibility to accept or reject work? (And is this actually happening).
• Is there a regular pattern/schedule to their work?
• Does your business typically have ongoing work available for the same role?

When assessing if someone’s a casual employee, you don’t need to tick every box, and no single factor on the list will make the decision on its own.

Updates to Casual Conversion

The second update covers how casual employees change to permanent employment a.k.a Casual Conversion.

Here’s what you need to know:

• Under the new rules casual employees now have the right to request a conversion to permanent employment.
• The waiting period for requesting conversion depends on your company's size. For businesses with 15+ employees the wait time is 6 months. For those with fewer than 15 employees the wait time is 12 months.
• Casuals must put their request in writing and requests can only be made once every six months.
• If you’ve got casual employees who started before 26 August 2024, the old rules apply until 25 February 2025.
  Do you need to do anything?

To stay compliant with these changes, here’s a quick checklist:

• Review your casuals: Make sure your casual employees meet the new definition.
• Notify your team: Let your casual employees know about the new rules and their right to request casual conversion.
• Provide your team with the Fair Work Casual Information Statement (you can download it here). You’ll need to give this to your casual employees when they start, after six months, and every year after that. Hot tip: Set some reminders—trust us, it’s easier that way!

Our tips for employers (and a few things we can help with):

• Update your casual employment contracts to reflect the new rules.
• Assess how switching casual employees to permanent might affect your business—things like changes to entitlements and obligations.

Check out the Fair Work website for more details or reach out to our team of resourceful humans at hello@davypartners.com.au. We’re here to help you navigate these changes smoothly and keep your compliance in check!