The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has recently undertaken it’s 4 yearly review of the Hair and Beauty Award. As part of this review, they have announced a decision to vary overtime pay provisions under this award for full-time and part-time employees.
These changes will be in effect on or after the first full pay period starting from 31 January 2022. We outline further below the implications of this decision on overtime rules.
What is overtime?
Overtime is typically a term within most modern awards that provide for special provisions (typically prescribing a higher penalty rate) for when an employee works additional hours. It can include work done:
- beyond their ordinary hours of work
- outside the agreed number of hours
- outside the spread of ordinary hours.
The spread of hours is the times of the day ordinary hours can be worked (ie in the Hair and Beauty Award the spread of ordinary hours are 7 AM to 9 PM on Monday to Friday; 7 AM to 6 PM on Saturday and 10 AM to 5PM on Sunday).
What is changing in the Hair and Beauty Award?
Prior to this decision, there was a lack of clarity around the rates of pay under the Hair and Beauty Award for when certain overtime hours were performed. The award previously did not outline a rate of pay for when a full-time or part-time employee worked outside the spread of hours detailed in clause 28.2(a), or more than the maximum daily hours specified in clause 28.3 (generally 9 hours a day, or 10.5 hours a day in limited circumstances).
The decision has now made clear that full-time and part-time employees are entitled to be paid overtime rates for work that is performed outside the span of hours and for hours worked in excess of the maximum per day.
When will overtime apply under this award?
From the first full pay period from 31 January 2022, full-time and part-time employees under this award will get overtime for working:
Full-time employees
- Over 38 hours per week
- Outside the spread of hours, or
- in excess of the maximum daily hours.
Part-time employees
- In excess of the agreed part-time hours of work (part-time employees must agree to a set pattern of work on commencement of employment, including the number of hours, days of the week, and start and finish times)
- Outside the spread of ordinary hours, or
- in excess of the maximum daily hours.
Other changes to the Hair and Beauty Award
Changes to overtime rules are not the only changes to the Hair and Beauty Award commencing on 31 January 2021. There are also changes to penalty rates for casual employees for weekend work, as explained in our previous article.
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Disclaimer
The information provided in these blog articles is general in nature and is not intended to substitute for professional advice. If you are unsure about how this information applies to your specific situation we recommend you contact Employment Innovations for advice.