• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Home
  • Join Self-Employed Australia
  • Protected Members
    • Tax Audit Support
    • Unfair Contract Help
  • About US
    • Who We Are
    • SEA Board
    • Annual Reports
    • No Spam Policy
    • Content Disclaimer
  • Contact Us
  • Log in/Log out
  • Update your details

Self Employed Australia

"Everyone needs an Advocate"

“Everyone needs an Advocate”

  • Current Advocacy
    • Reforming the ATO
    • Small Business Tax Tribunal
    • Fair Contracts
    • Fixing Disputes/Prompt Payment
    • The ‘Gig’ Economy
  • Past Advocacy
    • Submissions
    • Defending ABN Contractors
    • Work Safety
    • Independent Contractors Act
    • Owner-Drivers
    • International Labour Organisation
    • Independent Contractors: How Many?
  • SEA Submissions
    • Submissions
    • Independent Contractors: How Many?
  • Members-only Articles
    • About ICA
    • Contract Design and Templates
    • Independent Contractors Act
    • Practical Assistance
    • Taxation Matters
    • What is an Independent Contractor?
  • News Categories
  • NotAboveTheLaw

Will franchisors get away with it? Vulnerable Workers Bill

May 14, 2017 by Self-Employed Australia

Sunday, May 14, 2017

It’s getting close to decision time in the Senate! Remember the 7-Eleven wages fraud scandal exposed by 4Corners/Fairfax late 2015? The scandal has spread since then with Pizza Hut, Domino’s Pizza, Caltex and United Petroleum being caught out underpaying workers.

The Federal government has put forward legislation (The Vulnerable Workers Bill) that will require franchisors to be at least partly responsible if underpayment occurs. We strongly support the Bill. It will force franchisors to properly support the 79,000 small business franchisees to prevent underpayment.

We’ve talked about the Franchise Council of Australia before. When the current FCA chair Bruce Billson was Shadow Small Business Minister, he said of the franchisors’ body: “The FCA’s advice … is quite unconscionable in its intentional omissions and misrepresentations.” This should raise ‘red flags’ about the FCA’s current opposition to the new law.

We have completed a careful analysis of the core changes the FCA is lobbying to have made to the Bill. We look at the implications of key words and how the FCA changes would neuter the Bill.

Here’s our analysis.

In summary we say:

  • The current wording of the Vulnerable Workers Bill has the practical effect of requiring franchisors to exercise their responsibility to franchisees.
  • The wording of the Bill desired by the Franchise Council of Australia would enable franchisors to avoid their responsibility to franchisees.
  • This FCA version would ‘dump’ all responsibility onto franchisees and remove franchisors from responsibility. It would weaken the Australian franchise system because it weakens the support that franchisors are supposed to supply to franchisees.
  • The FCA’s version is harmful not only to the 79,000 small business franchisees in Australia but to their thousands of workers as well.

We are putting in a strong effort asking Senators to pass the Bill substantially as is.

Filed Under: Campaigns, Franchising, Unfair contracts

Primary Sidebar

Recent Posts

  • Is your superannuation money safe? Morrison v Albanese May 17, 2022
  • Morrison’s dead flat small business pitch May 11, 2022
  • Albanese plan to smash Australia’s 2 million self-employed May 5, 2022
  • Closing the construction watchdog will harm self-employed tradies April 24, 2022
  • ATO ramps up its aggressive campaign against small and family businesses April 14, 2022
  • Government gets massive tax windfall from Australians who have received no income. Bastards! April 8, 2022
  • For goodness’ sake stop wearing those same pyjamas at work! April 3, 2022
  • Update – Hotel Quarantine Prosecution – Supreme Court Victoria – A bit boring but important! March 21, 2022
  • Confronting bullies in our own (Australian) backyard – Unfair Contracts March 3, 2022
  • We lodge court action against WorkSafe Victoria. No-one should be above the law February 15, 2022

Categories

Footer

  • Facebook
  • LinkedIn
  • Twitter

Copyright © 2022 · News Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in