Fact or Fiction

When it comes to junior employees, there is a whole range of guidance on what you can and can’t do regarding their employment. Each state and territory has different legislation which has resulted in a lot of misinformation being circulated. The following questions and answers should provide some assistance on what is fact and what is fiction. 

Fact or fiction

The minimum working age in NSW is 14 and 9 months.

Fiction. Surprisingly, there is no longer any minimum working age in NSW. 

Fact or fiction

It is cheaper to use junior employees. 

Fact. The Registered and Licensed Clubs Award 2020 outlines different minimum rates for junior employees who are 19 years of age and younger. This ranges from 60 per cent to 85 per cent of the appropriate adult classification. An exception to this is where the junior works as a liquor service employee. In that case, they must be paid at the adult rate of pay. 

Fact or fiction 

Junior employees can’t work during school hours.

Fact. Employees who are school aged (year 10 and below) cannot work during school hours because there is legislation which governs school attendance. 

Fact or fiction

Junior employees can’t work past 9pm.

Fiction. There is no legislation which restricts the time a junior employee can work, unless they are 15 and under and working in the acting and/or modelling industries. Regardless, you do have work health and safety obligations, and if your junior employee has been at school all day and needs to go to school the next day, the club should ensure they are taking appropriate steps to manage fatigue. We recommend adopting a policy to ensure junior employees are working appropriate hours with enough rest in between shifts and school days. 

Junior employees are a great way to bring the younger demographic into your club, but you do need to ensure you are across your legal requirements. We would recommend before hiring junior staff that you notify your workers’ compensation insurer, update your risk register and review your modern Award or Enterprise Agreement for any legal requirements. 

Finally, there are likely to be some changes in this area, with the Australian Government considering ratifying the International Labour Organisation Convention (the Convention) which concerns the minimum age for admission to employment. The Convention would set:

• a minimum working age of 15;
• a minimum age for hazardous work; and 
• the conditions where children no younger than 13 years may undertake light work. 

The Convention still allows for flexibility and for Australia to have exemptions. The Government has stated they would create categories that would allow children under 13 years of age to undertake light work, including delivering newspapers, working in a family enterprise like a farm or market stall. If these legal changes occur, we will update you on any changes that may impact how clubs engage junior employees.