On 12 December 2013 Seyfarth Shaw announced our Australian offices were officially open for business. Today marks five years since those doors opened.
What better way to reflect than to ask ourselves, what have been the biggest changes in our specialist areas of law over those five years?
“It has become increasingly difficult to make enterprise agreements that are compliant, genuinely enterprise-focused and fit for purpose due to increasing modern award complexity combined with the unworkable approach adopted in decisions of the Fair Work Commission and Federal Court to the BOOT and other procedural aspects of agreement making.”
– Rachel Bernasconi
“Over the past five years, I have observed the tension between sharing improved safety lessons and legal risk. I am concerned about compounding this potential unintended consequence with the rise of the industrial manslaughter offence.”
– Paul Cutrone
“I think the biggest development in employment and industrial law is how courts and tribunals are grappling with modern expectations of what ‘working’ looks like. This means they are looking at how to deal with the gig economy, flexible working arrangements (including working from home and telecommuting), employees wanting lengthy periods away from work and ‘portfolio’ careers. There is a real tension as employers seek flexibility to ensure customer demands are met while balancing the costs of labour vs employee representative groups seeking to pull the other way, seeking automatic casual conversion rights and laws that treat gig workers as employees. The next five years will see this tension play out in the policy debate.”
– Ben Dudley
“The most significant change I have seen is increasing employee mobility. Employees of large international organisations are spending more time on assignment in locations throughout the Asia Pacific, on both a short-term and long-term basis. We see this occurring as a result of organisations expanding their operations throughout the region. Employers are increasingly seeking specialist employment advice on both a single jurisdiction and multi-jurisdiction basis, including to confirm compliance with new frameworks and to ensure the appropriate arrangements are in place.”
– Luke Edwards
“The last five years has cemented a realisation that has been brewing for the last ten years. Enterprise bargaining amidst the current regulatory environment has reached its use-by date for many employers. Enterprise bargaining is no longer an opportunity to secure win-win outcomes but rather a process aimed at reducing the risk to on-going operations.”
– Chris Gardner
“There has been a shift away from spending money on large, wordy paper systems written by lawyers. I question whether anyone is any safer once they are developed. Smart organisations are investing heavily in understanding their key risks, controls and testing the effectiveness of those controls. This is where their efforts need to be.”
– Jane Hall
“One of the most significant developments I have seen in the last five years is the rise in the influence of workplace regulators. Consistent with the overall dynamic facing corporate Australia, we are seeing far more active, better resourced and assertive regulators across various workplace issues. The environment is one of heightened focus on compliance with workplace and safety laws; the financial and reputational stakes are higher than ever for employers who fall short.”
– Darren Perry
“Over the past 5 years, we have seen a number of areas where our Fair Work Commission cannot speak with one voice. While many parts of its jurisdiction have been affected, it is most noticeable in individual claims. How the Fair Work Commission balances even very serious conduct against mitigating factors remains unpredictable and has resulted in flip-flopping which creates ongoing uncertainty. This is costly and time consuming. Faced with cost and uncertainty we are seeing our clients feel pressure to settle rather than defend a sound and rational decision to uphold reasonable standards of conduct. The absence of clear statements of principle from the Fair Work Commission (such as we had in the past) and its increasingly subjective approach creates uncertainty, inefficiency and unfairness of a different kind.”
– Henry Skene
“The changes have been many and varied. What I am seeing is increased competition across a number of industry sectors, which means there is a war to retain and protect the most talented staff, who are the engine of the business. This has led to a big uptick in restraint of trade work – a highly specialised area which can be compared to a game of chess. We are passionate about this area of law and have built a specialist service model that in our opinion is market leading – whether it be getting into court within a matter of days when necessary, to defending applications for injunctions or damages. Our clients recognise that a good restraint is a business asset, and invest accordingly.”
– Michael Tamvakologos
On behalf of the team, we would like to thank the truly valued supporters of Seyfarth Shaw in Australia. We are excited to continue to work with you into 2019, and beyond.
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