The Fair Work Ombudsman has recently released an article on unpaid work trials to assist employers in understanding when they should or should not be paying a person for labour prior to offering them a job.
Employers may ask that the person undertake a ‘work trial’ to demonstrate they can perform the tasks required of a job. A work trial is supervised, set within a reasonable time period and be deemed necessary to understand a person’s ability to perform the tasks required.
Employers who use unpaid work trials as a means of seeking a form of ‘employment arrangement’ to engage people in unpaid work is against the law. Work trials where a person is unsupervised, works beyond reasonable hours or time period to assess their ability or skills to do the job or where it is not necessary to perform a work trial in order to do the job is unlawful.
If an employer needs further time to assess a person for a vacant position, they may request that the person enter an employment arrangement such as a probationary period or casual and are paid appropriately for the hours worked.
For further information on unpaid work trials read more here.
Liability limited by a scheme approved under Professional Standards Legislation. This article has been prepared by Vanessa Baglieri, Marketing Manager. The information provided should not be relied upon as legal advice. You should speak with Rosa Raco directly about your specific circumstances via email rraco@wrlaw.com.au or phone03 54996131.
