With Christmas not far away, now is the time for employers and employees in the state industrial relations system to check working arrangements for public holidays over the Christmas New Year period. This season’s public holidays are: Christmas Day, Friday 25 December 2020 Boxing Day, Saturday 26 December 2020 and Monday 28 December 2020. New Year’s Day, Friday 1 January 2021. When Boxing Day...

With Black Friday sales coming up and many people doing their Christmas shopping online this year, Consumer Protection is warning consumers that scammers are out to take your money with fake retailer websites, social media pages and classified ads. So far this year scammers have stolen a staggering $1.1 million from 418 WA victims in ‘buying and selling scams’ which, according to new figures from...

The average price of regular unleaded petrol (ULP) is set to increase by over 29 cents per litre (cpl) to 132.8 cpl tomorrow, so FuelWatch is encouraging Perth drivers, if they can, to fill up today to save money. FuelWatch advises that on Wednesday 25 November 2020, most branded retailers are hiking their ULP price: Caltex/Ampol, Caltex Woolworths, 7-Eleven, BP and Coles Express hiking by...

It’s World Toilet Day (November 19) and WA’s plumbing regulator is sharing key advice to ensure lavatories are safe and efficient. Building and Energy Executive Director Saj Abdoolakhan urged home owners not to attempt to install or repair a toilet themselves. “By law, plumbing work related to sanitation, water supply or drainage must only be carried out by a licensed plumber ,” he said. “Many...

A photographer of new-born babies was arrested and has appeared in the Perth Magistrates Court today on six charges of accepting payments from consumers but failing to supply some of the images to parents, an alleged breach of the Australian Consumer Law. An arrest warrant was issued against Ms Sheed of Aubin Grove after numerous attempts by Consumer Protection to serve her with a court summons...

A new social media campaign to educate employers and employees in Western Australia has been launched by Wageline at the Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety. The Inquiry into Wage Theft in Western Australia recommended a social media campaign in order to raise the level of employer and employee awareness of employment rights and obligations and the pathways available for pursuing...

They might look harmless, but in the wrong hands (and mouths) button batteries can become child killers. Every week in Australia, 20 children present to an emergency department following exposure to button batteries, with one child a month suffering serious injuries. If swallowed, coin-sized lithium button batteries can lodge in a child’s system and the resulting chemical reaction can cause...

A Bayswater waste recycling company has been fined a total of $330,000 (and ordered to pay an additional $234,000 in costs) after being found guilty of gross negligence over a 2016 incident in which a labour hire worker’s arm was amputated at the shoulder. Resource Recovery Solutions Pty Ltd was found guilty in the Perth Magistrates Court in July of two offences - gross negligence in failing to...

A WorkSafe proactive inspection program has found that the owners of tower cranes have limited knowledge and understanding of the correct procedures for major inspections of tower cranes. The inspection program was conducted throughout the 2019/20 financial year, looking at safety issues relating to tower cranes in service at WA construction sites in both metropolitan and regional areas. WorkSafe...

In June 2020, the Western Australian Industrial Relations Commission (WAIRC) issued the 2020 State Wage Case decision. The WAIRC decision granted a 1.75% per week increase in the state minimum wage and WA award rates of pay from 1 January 2021. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the minimum pay rates for award free employees and all pay rates in WA awards remained unchanged from 1 July 2020. The...

Even though Western Australians are getting back on their feet post the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic, there are some who are still struggling to make ends meet due to losing their jobs or suffering reduced hours at work. If you’re a tenant whose income has dropped 75 per cent or more, you should know that the Residential Rent Relief Grant Scheme – which covers four-weeks’ rent up to the value of...