National Employment Standards 2 of 10 – Flexible working arrangements

Hi, welcome to tips Tuesday

My name is Melanie Thorley and I am the principle solicitor of MJT Law.

Today I want to talk about number 2 of the 10 national employment standards.

Flexible working arrangements

An employee can ask for a flexible working arrangement if they have been an employee (other than casual) for more than 12 months or a casual who has been working for more than 12 months systematically and has a reasonable expectation of ongoing work.

An employee  can ask if:

• They are a parent or responsibility to care for a child school aged or younger
• A carer
• Has a disability
• Over 55 years old
• Experiencing family or domestic violence
• Providing support to a member of their household or immediate family who requires care and support because of family or domestic violence.

If an employee has made a request then before responding an employer must first discuss the request with the employee and try to reach an agreement.  If the request is refused then the response must be in writing.