Fair Work Australia began operation on 1 July 2009 following the enactment of the Fair Work Act 2009 and associated transitional legislation. The new tribunal assumed the functions of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission and the Australian Industrial Registry (both date back to 1904) and the Australian Fair Pay Commission (established in 2005) and some of the functions of the Workplace Authority (established in 2007).
Fair Work Australia (FWA) is the national workplace relations tribunal. It is an independent body with power to carry out a range of functions including:
- providing a safety net of minimum conditions, including minimum wages, in awards
- facilitating good faith bargaining and the making of enterprise agreements
- granting remedies for unfair dismissal
- regulating the taking of industrial action
- resolving a range of collective and individual workplace disputes through conciliation, mediation and in some cases arbitration
- functions in connection with workplace determinations, equal remuneration, transfer of business, general workplace protections, right of entry and stand down.
Fair Work Australia is located in every capital city. You can contact Fair Work Australia 1300 799 675.
For more information on the Fair Work Australia see their web site at our Related Links.