Fair Work Act 2009
Sections and provisions with full text and the judgments that cite each one.
Section 1 — Definitions
In this Part: amended Act means this Act as amended by the amending Act. amending Act means the Fair Work Amendment (Textile, Clothing and Footwear Industry) Act 2012. commencement means the…
Section 2 — Commencement
(1) Each provision of this Act specified in column 1 of the table commences, or is taken to have commenced, in accordance with column 2 of the table. Any other statement in column 2 has effect…
Section 2A — Transitional provision—when first variations of default fund term take effect
(1) This clause applies to the first 4 yearly review of default fund terms of modern awards under Division 4A of Part 2-3 (as inserted by Schedule 1 to the amending Act). (2) In the review,…
Section 2B — Transitional provision—modern awards made on or after 1 January 2014
If a modern award is made in the period that starts on 1 January 2014 and ends on 31 December 2017, then, until the default fund term of the award is varied after that period under Division 4A of…
Section 3 — Object of this Act
The object of this Act is to provide a balanced framework for cooperative and productive workplace relations that promotes national economic prosperity and social inclusion for all Australians by:…
Section 4 — Guide to this Act
Overview of this Act (1) This Act is about workplace relations. It: (a) provides for terms and conditions of employment (Chapter 2); and (b) sets out rights and responsibilities of employees,…
Section 5 — Terms and conditions of employment (Chapter 2)
(1) Chapter 2 provides for terms and conditions of employment of national system employees. (2) Part 2-1 has the core provisions for the Chapter. It deals with compliance with, and interaction…
Section 6 — Rights and responsibilities of employees, employers, organisations etc. (Chapter 3)
(1) Chapter 3 sets out rights and responsibilities of national system employees, national system employers, organisations and others (such as independent contractors and industrial associations). (2)…
Section 6A — Rights and responsibilities of regulated workers, regulated businesses, organisations etc. (Chapter 3A)
(1) Chapter 3A sets out rights and responsibilities of certain regulated workers who perform work under services contracts, and of certain regulated businesses, organisations and others. (2) Part…
Section 6B — Rights and responsibilities of persons in a road transport contractual chain
(1) Chapter 3B sets out rights and responsibilities of persons in a road transport contractual chain. (2) Part 3B-1 has the core provisions for the Chapter. It deals with compliance with road…
Section 7 — Regulations dealing with various matters
Application, saving and transitional (1) The regulations may make provisions dealing with matters of an application, saving or transitional nature relating to the amendments made by the amending Act.…
Section 8 — Part 5 of Schedule 4 to the amending Act
(1) The amendments made by Part 5 of Schedule 4 to the amending Act (which is about notice of employee representational rights) apply in relation to notices of employee representational rights that…
Section 8A — Schedule 3A to the amending Act
The amendments made by Schedule 3A to the amending Act apply in relation to a matter that arises before or after the commencement of that Schedule, whether or not a conference starts to be conducted…
Section 9 — Miscellaneous (Chapter 6)
(1) Chapter 6 is a collection of miscellaneous matters that relate to the other Chapters. (2) Part 6-1 provides rules relating to applications for remedies under this Act. It prevents certain…
Section 9A — Application, transitional and saving provisions for amendments (Schedules)
The Schedules contain application, transitional and saving provisions relating to amendments of this Act. Note: Application, transitional and saving provisions relating to the enactment of this Act,…
Section 10 — FWC to vary certain modern awards
(1) This clause applies in relation to a modern award if the award: (a) is made before 1 January 2014; and (b) is in operation on that day; and (c) immediately before that day, does not include a…
Section 11 — FWC to update text of certain modern awards
(1) This clause applies in relation to a modern award if the award: (a) is made before 1 January 2014; and (b) is in operation on that day; and (c) immediately before that day, includes a term (the…
Section 12 — The Dictionary
In this Act: accommodation arrangement: see subsections 521A(1) and (2). action includes an omission. adoption-related leave: see subsection 67(5). adverse action: see section 342. affected…
Section 13 — Meaning of national system employee
A national system employee is an individual so far as he or she is employed, or usually employed, as described in the definition of national system employer in section 14, by a national system…
Section 14 — Meaning of national system employer
(1) A national system employer is: (a) a constitutional corporation, so far as it employs, or usually employs, an individual; or (b) the Commonwealth, so far as it employs, or usually employs, an…
Section 14A — Transitional matters relating to employers etc. becoming, or ceasing to be, national system employers etc.
(1) The regulations may make provisions of a transitional, application or saving nature in relation to any of the following: (a) an employer ceasing to be a national system employer because…
Section 15 — Ordinary meanings of employee and employer
(1) A reference in this Act to an employee with its ordinary meaning: (a) includes a reference to a person who is usually such an employee; and (b) does not include a person on a vocational…
Section 15A — Meaning of casual employee
General rule (1) An employee is a casual employee of an employer only if: (a) the employment relationship is characterised by an absence of a firm advance commitment to continuing and indefinite…
Section 15AA — Determining the ordinary meanings of employee and employer
(1) For the purposes of this Act, whether an individual is an employee of a person within the ordinary meaning of that expression, or whether a person is an employer of an individual within the…
Section 15KA — Specific provision about the effect of certain provisions in determining whether a person is an employee or an employer
(1) For the purposes of ascertaining the real substance, practical reality and true nature of the relationship between an individual and a person, any steps taken by a digital labour platform…
Section 15RA — Meanings of road transport contractual chain and in a road transport contractual chain
(1) A road transport contractual chain means a chain or series of contracts or arrangements: (a) under which work is performed for a party to the first contract or arrangement in the chain or series…
Section 15AB — Individual may elect that section 15AA does not apply
(1) This section applies to a relationship between a person and an individual. Person may notify individual before the section 15AA commencement that they may give an opt out notice (2) The person…
Section 15B — Meaning of collective agreement
A collective agreement means the following: (a) an employee-like worker collective agreement (see subsection 536MK(4)); (b) a road transport collective agreement (see subsection 536MK(5)).
Section 15RB — Meaning of a road transport employee-like worker
A road transport employee-like worker means an employee-like worker who performs work in the road transport industry.
Section 15AC — Effect of an opt out notice
(1) This section applies if an individual gives an opt out notice to a person in respect of the relationship between the person and the individual in accordance with section 15AB. Opt out notice…
Section 15C — Meaning of contractor high income threshold
(1) Subject to this section, the contractor high income threshold is the amount prescribed by, or worked out in the manner prescribed by, the regulations. (2) A regulation made for the purposes of…
Section 15AD — Opt out notice may be revoked by an individual
(1) An individual who has given an opt out notice to a person may (subject to subsection (4)), at any time after giving the opt out notice, revoke the opt out notice by giving written notice (a…
Section 15D — Meaning of minimum standards guidelines
Minimum standards guidelines means the following: (a) employee-like worker guidelines (see subsection 536KR(2)); (b) road transport guidelines (see subsection 536KR(3)).
Section 15E — Meaning of minimum standards order
A minimum standards order means the following: (a) an employee-like worker minimum standards order (see subsection 536JY(2)); (b) a road transport minimum standards order (see subsection 536JY(3)).
Section 15F — Meaning of regulated business
A person is a regulated business if: (a) the person is a digital labour platform operator (see section 15M); or (b) the person is a road transport business (see subsection 15R).
Section 15G — Meaning of regulated worker
A person is a regulated worker if: (a) the person is an employee-like worker (see section 15P); or (b) the person is a regulated road transport contractor (see section 15Q).
Section 15H — Meaning of services contract
General meaning (1) A services contract is a contract for services: (a) that relates to the performance of work under the contract by an individual; and (b) that has the requisite constitutional…
Section 15J — Prospective regulated workers
A reference to a regulated worker, in relation to a services contract, includes a reference to a person who may become a regulated worker for a services contract.
Section 15K — Effect of Chapter in determining whether a person is an employee or an employer
For the purposes of ascertaining the real substance, practical reality and true nature of the relationship between an individual and a person for the purposes of determining: (a) whether the…
Section 15L — Meaning of digital labour platform
(1) A digital labour platform means an online enabled application, website or system operated to arrange, allocate or facilitate the provision of labour services, where: (a) the operator of the…
Section 15M — Meaning of digital labour platform operator
A digital labour platform operator means the operator of a digital labour platform, being an operator that enters into or facilitates a services contract under which work is performed by…
Section 15N — Meaning of digital platform work
(1) Digital platform work means: (a) work performed by an independent contractor, where: (i) the work is performed under a services contract through or by means of a digital labour platform, or the…
Section 15P — Meaning of employee-like worker
(1) A person is an employee-like worker if: (a) the person is: (i) an individual who is a party to a services contract in their capacity as an individual (other than as a principal), and performs…
Section 15Q — Meaning of regulated road transport contractor
(1) A person is a regulated road transport contractor if: (a) the person is: (i) an individual who is a party to a services contract in their capacity as an individual (other than as a principal),…
Section 15R — Meaning of road transport business
(1) A person is a road transport business if the person: (a) receives services under a services contract, where the services contract provides for the performance of work in the road transport…
Section 15S — Meaning of road transport industry
(1) The road transport industry means: (a) the road transport and distribution industry within the meaning of the Road Transport and Distribution Award 2020 as in force on 1 July 2024, with such…
Section 16 — Meaning of base rate of pay
General meaning (1) The base rate of pay of a national system employee is the rate of pay payable to the employee for his or her ordinary hours of work, but not including any of the following: (a)…
Section 17 — Meaning of child of a person
(1) A child of a person includes: (a) someone who is a child of the person within the meaning of the Family Law Act 1975; and (b) an adopted child or step-child of the person. It does not matter…
Section 17A — Meaning of directly and indirectly (in relation to TCF work)
(1) If there is a chain or series of 2 or more arrangements for the supply or production of goods produced by TCF work performed by a person (the worker), the following provisions have effect: (a)…
Section 18 — Meaning of full rate of pay
General meaning (1) The full rate of pay of a national system employee is the rate of pay payable to the employee, including all the following: (a) incentive-based payments and bonuses; (b) loadings;…