By Amanda Curatore

As part of the Fair Work Commission (FWC) 4 yearly modern review process, the FWC recently handed down a decision which addressed casual employees’ entitlement to overtime rate under numerous modern awards, including the Fitness Industry Award 2010 (Award).

Following a formal review of the Award, which has taken many years to finalise, the FWC recently determined that the Award will be amended to reflect that casual employees are entitled to overtime penalty rates in accordance with clause 19.1 of the Award.

Historically, a casual employee’s entitlement to overtime rates was the subject of a dispute and requested variation to the Award. This recent decision as determined this issue such that casuals will now be entitled to overtime rates where they work:

  1. outside the span of ordinary hours (5AM – 11PM Monday to Friday, and 6AM – 9PM Saturday and Sunday);
  2. over 38 hours in a week averaged over four weeks; or
  3. over 10 hours in any one day.

The FWC further found that the specified overtime penalty rates do not include the casual loading, either on a cumulative or compounded basis.

A determination has been issued of the Award which comes into operation on 20 November 2020.

The changes to the Award do not take effect to a particular employee until the start of the employee’s first full pay period that starts on or after 20 November 2020.

It should be noted that the change to the Award will have no impact upon the entitlements or obligations of those currently employed under an Enterprise Agreement.

Employers may wish to take this opportunity to review its operating and roster structure to consider what, if any, amendments can be made to minimise the impact of casual overtime.

For HR Assured clients, updated pay tables will be provided in HRA Cloud in due course.

Have a question about the Fitness Industry Award 2010? The team at HR Assured is here to help! Contact us to understand how we can support your fitness business.

Amanda Curatore is a qualified Senior Workplace Relations Consultant at FCB Group and HR Assured. Amanda is highly experienced in providing workplace relations advice and assistance to clients in a wide range of matters including employment contracts, modern award interpretation, managing performance, bullying and harassment, terminations and managing risk.