Running a business means more than delivering great products or services. You are also responsible for meeting a range of legal obligations that protect your business, your employees and your reputation. Missing even one key compliance area can lead to penalties, disputes or long-term risk.
This checklist breaks down essential legal compliance areas into simple categories, helping you identify what you should have in place and where you may need to review or update your systems.
Modern Awards & National Employment Standards
Do you know what industrial instruments apply to your business?
Are your employees classified correctly under the relevant award structure?
Are you aware of the National Employment Standards (NES) and applying them correctly?
Do you have clear process for Flexible Work Arrangement and casual conversion requests?
Do you provide the Fair Work Information Statement to all new starters
Leave Entitlements
Do you have full and accurate time and record keeping
Do you keep accurate records of employee leave entitlements, such as annual leave, personal leave, long service leave?
Contracts, Pay & Conditions
Correct use of employee v. Independent Contractor classification
Payroll systems set up to correctly interpret awards
Signed employment contracts for every employee
Accurate employment type specified (full time, part time, casual)
Minimum pay rates reviewed annually following Fair Work Commission wage reviews (check our blog to make sure you’re not missing this key element: wage underpayment rulings – what business owners need to know)
Superannuation paid at the correct legislated rate and within timeframes
Payslips and Record Keeping
Payslips issued within one working day of payment
Payslips include all required details under the Fair Work Regulations
Accurate records of hours worked, wages, leave and superannuation
Records stored securely and retained for at least seven years
Policies
Fair Work compliant workplace policies in place
Code of conduct reflecting business values and expected behaviours
Anti-discrimination, bullying and sexual harassment policies
Sexual harassment prevention plan, and risk assessments and hazard registers
Effective training at induction and regular refresher training (for more insights on effective training, view our blog: when “tick-the-box” training isn’t enough)
Performance and Termination Processes
Managers trained on procedural fairness
Termination decisions aligned with Fair Work requirements
Correct notice periods or payments in lieu applied
Final pays, including accrued entitlements, calculated accurately
If there are items on this checklist that you don’t have in place, your business is at unnecessary risk.
This is not a full exhaustive compliance list. You should seek advice specific to your business and circumstances.
Get in touch to understand where your business stands and what steps to take next.
