Welcome to the April 2024 edition of LHA News
4 April 2024
Welcome to the April 2024 edition of LHA News.
To be granted a labour hire licence, a business needs to demonstrate they are prepared and able to comply with their legal obligations.
So, applicants must provide a range of materials, evidence and declarations in their licence application to assure LHA that foundations are in place to protect workers and build industry integrity.
When assessing an application, LHA may request more information from a business to properly understand any risks of non-compliance, and how they might be addressing those risks.
In this edition, we cover a case where a licence application was refused due to the company not satisfactorily providing information that had been repeatedly requested by LHA.
We also look at one of the most common issues in the labour hire industry – the misclassification of employees as independent contractors. Correctly classifying workers is a legal obligation for labour hire providers, and several recent LHA compliance activities have identified this issue.
Elsewhere in this edition, we look at further changes to the Fair Work Act – changes you’ll need to be across as they come into force in 2024 and beyond.
We hope you find this edition valuable.
Steve Dargavel
Labour Hire Licensing Commissioner
In this Edition
- Security company refused licence after poor responses to LHA requests for information
- Employee or independent contractor? Know the rules and classify workers correctly
- Changes coming to the Fair Work Act over the next 12 months
- Avoid the risk - renew your licence early
- LHA’s diverse program of industry engagement continues
Licensing update
In March 2024:
- 114 licence applications submitted
- 187 licence renewals granted
- 87 licences granted
- 40 licences refused or cancelled
Events and resources
- If your organisation delivers services to people with a disability in Victoria, the Victorian Disability Worker Commission wants your feedback on a range of topics under the Victorian Disability Worker Regulation Scheme. Complete the survey on the VDWC website.
- The Small Business Bus travels through Melbourne and rural Victoria to help businesses develop their ideas and capabilities. Book a session with an expert and access free mentoring and face-to-face advice.
- Eight winners representing the healthcare, emergency services, agriculture, transport and local government sectors were honoured in the 2023 WorkSafe Awards, held in March.