I'm wondering whether I'll have to wait a long time after royal accent for the new penalty rates bill [1] to enjoy not having to work 40 hours a week (and finally be able to work a standard 38).
From what I can tell, the bill only requires the Fair Work Commission to make/update awards such that you must be paid overtime, meaning the professional employees award won't be valid anymore (where they don't have to unless you earn less than 1.25x of minimum wage).
I'm wondering what your opinion/guess is (not legal advice) on whether we'll need to wait for the award to be updated, or can just go to our employers and say: hey, I'm working 38 hours unless you want to pay me overtime.
I was part of my union, but since engineers are barely in the union, being part of a Professionals Australia (the union for my industry) was kind of a waste of time, and I tried many times to get in touch with their organiser team to push membership in my company to not avail.
Since then I let it lapse because I thought they were doing a pretty bad job, since you can't have solidarity by yourself. In any case, that's why I can't ask them
[1] Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Penalty and Overtime Rates) Bill 2025:
https://parlinfo.aph.gov.au/parlInfo/search/display/display.w3p;db=LEGISLATION;id=legislation%2Fbills%2Fr7335_first-reps%2F0001;query=Id%3A%22legislation%2Fbills%2Fr7335_first-reps%2F0000%22;rec=0
This is not yet law.
Ammends this act:
[2] Fair Work Act 2009: https://www.legislation.gov.au/C2009A00028/latest/text
I really, really appreciate your through response, but I'm questioning how long it'll take after royal assent for it to practically be in force.
As it's currently written, it only compells the fair work commission to update, or make new awards in line with the amendment in this bill (I think?)
I'm wondering if someone knows if the way it's written can mean I can argue that section 18.6 of Professional Employees Award is no longer valid (if this bill, in fact, does make it invalid), before the fair work commission actually gets around to updating my award.
An interesting question. I don't know the answer, unfortunately. My best suggestion would be to write to your MP (especially if they're Labor) to ask for their opinion on the matter.
My guess is that it probably would make 18.6 invalid, though I'm not sure how awards actually apply to the professional sector. I thought the point of an award was that it's the minimum you're allowed in a given sector, and that agreements to above-award wage are not governed by it? But I could be missing something. Either way, I have no idea if it would automatically invalidate newly-unlawful clauses or if it would require the FWC to actively update the awards and only take effect once they get around to it.
Please do let us know if you get a response back!
Shall do :) I have called my MPs office (new the Labor MP in Melbourne) and they're putting the question forward for me to Amanda Rishworth.
I'll let you know I go.
Fingers crossed