Food Safety Course for a COVIDSafe Workplace

With the National Cabinet announcing its COVIDSafe economy framework, many retailers and hospitality outlets are preparing to reopen. However,...

With the National Cabinet announcing its COVIDSafe economy framework, many retailers and hospitality outlets are preparing to reopen. However, new rules are in place to prevent COVID-19 cases rising again. This includes maintaining a social distancing approach instore, limiting the number of diners at one time and stringent cleaning...

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Message from the CEO: 12 May 2020

With COVID-19 restrictions being gradually lifted across most states, retailers who had been forced to shut their doors are...

With COVID-19 restrictions being gradually lifted across most states, retailers who had been forced to shut their doors are beginning to reopen. The struggle is far from over, but hopefully this does indicate that the worst is behind us. Just yesterday, the National Retail Association hosted a Town Hall webinar...

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How to safely bring your employees back to the workplace after hibernation

By Thomas Parer and Calum Woods, NRA Legal Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 pandemic spread and required...

By Thomas Parer and Calum Woods, NRA Legal Due to the speed with which the COVID-19 pandemic spread and required social distancing to ‘flatten the curve’, many companies were forced to either stand down their workforces or organise and implement alternative working arrangements (including work from home arrangements) with little...

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Message from the CEO: 5 May 2020

The last few weeks have been bigger than any other challenge to confront Australia in living memory. While Australia...

The last few weeks have been bigger than any other challenge to confront Australia in living memory. While Australia has done an incredible job, relative to other countries, in containing the spread of COVID-19, the economic hit has been substantial. Indeed, Treasurer Josh Frydenberg has forecast a $4 billion...

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Casuals and Jobkeeper: casual absenteeism and disciplinary processes

By Andrew Piper and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal   Although reasonably new (and still changing), the JobKeeper program has, so far,...

By Andrew Piper and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal   Although reasonably new (and still changing), the JobKeeper program has, so far, had a mixed effect on businesses. Whilst some employers have embraced it wholeheartedly others, especially those with a workforce comprised largely of casual employees usually earning less than $1,500 a fortnight,...

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SA to ban single-use plastic straws, cutlery, stirrers & EPS foodware

The Single-use and Other Plastic Products (Waste Avoidance) Bill 2020 was introduced to Parliament on 30 April 2020. This...

The Single-use and Other Plastic Products (Waste Avoidance) Bill 2020 was introduced to Parliament on 30 April 2020. This Bill prohibits the sale, supply and distribution of certain single-use plastic products and establishes a framework for adding other products in the future. Key elements of the proposed legislation include: Single-use...

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APCO launches weekly sustainability webinar series

The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation has launched a new sustainability webinar series to help industry professionals stay connected. The weekly...

The Australian Packaging Covenant Organisation has launched a new sustainability webinar series to help industry professionals stay connected. The weekly APCO Community Meeting events are designed to bring together sustainability experts from across the business, government and environmental communities to explore a range of sustainability ideas. These include packaging specific...

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Beyond JobKeeper: Alternative flexibility options in the coronavirus epoch

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal Many of our readers will doubtless be aware, by virtue of the...

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal Many of our readers will doubtless be aware, by virtue of the many, many circulars issued in recent weeks, of the temporary amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) which allow employers greater flexibility in the engagement of employees who are...

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Message from the CEO: 28 April 2020

We are almost at the end of the first full month of lockdown restrictions. The impact that COVID-19 has...

We are almost at the end of the first full month of lockdown restrictions. The impact that COVID-19 has had on the retail sector cannot be overstated, even businesses that have been able to stay open have suffered the ripple effects to the economy. Last week the Australian Bureau of...

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Can COVID-19 be transferred through food and packaging? We have the facts.

People are, rightfully so, asking about how coronavirus can be transmitted, and the focus is now on food and...

People are, rightfully so, asking about how coronavirus can be transmitted, and the focus is now on food and food packaging. Can buying groceries or getting takeaway pose a risk? According to the World Health Organization, as well as the Australian and New Zealand governments, there is no risk of...

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McDonald’s announces country-of-origin labelling

McDonald's Australia have announced that they will display the country of origin of the ingredients in their products. From 1...

McDonald's Australia have announced that they will display the country of origin of the ingredients in their products. From 1 July 2018, the adoption of the country of origin food labelling system was mandatory for most foods sold in retail stores, markets and vending machines, whether packaged or unpackaged. The Information...

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Message from the CEO: 21 April 2020

Following the National Code of Conduct for retail leasing unveiled by the National Cabinet, various state governments have begun...

Following the National Code of Conduct for retail leasing unveiled by the National Cabinet, various state governments have begun rolling out their respective packages. As with every policy response to COVID-19, it is incredibly important that state governments get these laws right. That’s why we have advocated to all tiers...

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Fair Work Commission hands down first COVID-19 related redundancy pay decisions

By Calum Woods and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Commission has set the benchmark for employers seeking to...

By Calum Woods and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Commission has set the benchmark for employers seeking to reduce the amount of redundancy pay payable to employees who were made redundant due to a downturn in business as a result of COVID-19. Earlier this month, the FWC heard an...

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NSW Government protecting retail workers through $5000 fines

There is no excuse for abuse, yet we are still seeing essential workers abused by customers. Spitting and coughing...

There is no excuse for abuse, yet we are still seeing essential workers abused by customers. Spitting and coughing on shop assistants, public transport staff and police has been on the rise, and the NSW Government has said “enough is enough”. $5000 on the spot fines will be handed...

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Reminder for ANZAC Day trading hours, SA treasurer announces exemptions

The Hon. Rob Lucas, MLC, has announced an exemption to coronavirus trading hours, up to and including Tuesday 19th...

The Hon. Rob Lucas, MLC, has announced an exemption to coronavirus trading hours, up to and including Tuesday 19th May 2020. The exemption applies to non-exempt shops anThe exemption applies to non-exempt shops and essential services in the Greater Adelaide Shopping District, excluding car and boat dealerships. Contact us!d...

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Message from the CEO: 14 April 2020

As the Coronavirus lockdown continues, last week provided further developments regarding the retail sector. Following extensive collaboration with numerous...

As the Coronavirus lockdown continues, last week provided further developments regarding the retail sector. Following extensive collaboration with numerous industry groups, including the NRA, the Prime Minister announced the national tenancy framework. Overall, we believe it strikes a sensible balance between the interests of tenants and landlords and would maximise...

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