Fair Work Commission announces action plan to assist small business employers

By Sooraj Sidhu and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal Yesterday, the Fair Work Commission’s (FWC) president Iain Ross responded to reports...

By Sooraj Sidhu and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal Yesterday, the Fair Work Commission’s (FWC) president Iain Ross responded to reports commissioned last year, which urged the establishment of a ‘Small Business Division’ of the Fair Work Commission and the reduction of red tape associated with unfair dismissal and adverse action...

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What savvy consumers want from a retail experience

By Amy Roche - Retail Rockstars There is no doubt that online shopping has changed the face of retail forever. However, customers still...

By Amy Roche - Retail Rockstars There is no doubt that online shopping has changed the face of retail forever. However, customers still want retail experience, and they crave personalisation, education, entertainment and enlightenment. At its core, online shopping offers 24-hour service with competitive and comparative pricing – something our stores cannot always deliver...

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Message from the CEO – July 31

The Federal Government’s Parliamentary Franchising Inquiry is now well underway – the findings of which are due at the...

The Federal Government’s Parliamentary Franchising Inquiry is now well underway – the findings of which are due at the end of September. As an attempt to establish the fact among the fiction, the Inquiry has been honing in on areas like how the Code is being operated and its effectiveness,...

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Improving opportunities for people with a disability

As a member of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the National Retail Association has been working on...

As a member of the Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, the National Retail Association has been working on policies that improve the workforce participation of a diverse range of groups that often struggle to secure work.  People with disability is one such group.  We are helping the Government...

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Out-of-hours misconduct justified dismissal

By Victoria Hansen and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has ruled that a worker who...

By Victoria Hansen and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The Fair Work Commission (FWC) has ruled that a worker who threw a full glass of beer over the heads of his colleagues at an official company Christmas party was justifiably dismissed. This is a significant decision regarding the dismissal of...

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What retailers need to know about the Queensland Container Refund Scheme

The Queensland Container Refund Scheme (CRS) launches on 1 November this year. Under the scheme, a 10 cent refund will...

The Queensland Container Refund Scheme (CRS) launches on 1 November this year. Under the scheme, a 10 cent refund will be provided to consumers for eligible, empty drink containers between 150ml and 3L in size that are returned to a participating Container Refund point. What retailers need to know The CRS will primarily affect...

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How to improve your online presence

Searching is one of the most popular activities on the internet, and an integral part of the modern consumer...

Searching is one of the most popular activities on the internet, and an integral part of the modern consumer journey. With online advertising becoming increasingly competitive, businesses looking to grow are encouraged to leverage the frequent use of search engines in the consumer’s decision making process. Recent figures show that only...

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Message from the CEO – 24 July

One thing retailers do exceptionally well is create jobs for hundreds of thousands of Australians - many of whom...

One thing retailers do exceptionally well is create jobs for hundreds of thousands of Australians - many of whom are in the youth category. Around one quarter of all employed young people are in the retail sector. These jobs help supplement their schooling or tertiary education, gear up for overseas...

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LUSH issue shows businesses must be alert and proactive on staff entitlements

The National Retail Association has today warned all businesses large and small of the need to be alert and...

The National Retail Association has today warned all businesses large and small of the need to be alert and proactive when dealing with their employees’ pay and entitlements, in the wake of the LUSH Cosmetics Australia issue. NRA Chief Executive Officer Dominique Lamb commended LUSH for the way they had...

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NRA Partners with Women in Retail & FMCG Leadership Summit

Research continues to demonstrate the value of a diverse leadership team. While this makes a great case for achieving gender...

Research continues to demonstrate the value of a diverse leadership team. While this makes a great case for achieving gender parity, women remain heavily underrepresented at the executive level in retail and FMCG. Only 12% of women occupy CEO positions, despite making up the majority of the workforce. At the consumer...

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Forums will get Queensland ready for Container Refund Scheme

Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef, Minister for Science and Minister for the Arts The Honourable Leeanne Enoch A...

Minister for Environment and the Great Barrier Reef, Minister for Science and Minister for the Arts The Honourable Leeanne Enoch A series of community forums will be held across Queensland to encourage community groups to participate in recycling opportunities through Queensland’s Container Refund Scheme, which starts on November 1. Minister for Environment...

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Legislative update: Modern slavery in supply chains

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal On 28 June 2018, the Commonwealth introduced the Modern Slavery Bill, which,...

By Alex Millman and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal On 28 June 2018, the Commonwealth introduced the Modern Slavery Bill, which, if passed, will target the supply chains of large businesses in a bid to quash modern slavery in Australia. A week prior, on 21 June 2018, the New South Wales...

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Message from the CEO: 17 July 2018

“Retail was a notable exception, with conditions in the sector remaining weaker.” It’s not the results we wanted to hear...

“Retail was a notable exception, with conditions in the sector remaining weaker.” It’s not the results we wanted to hear from NAB’s monthly business survey. The survey showed business conditions have been edging slightly higher, with conditions remaining favourable across most states and industries. But it’s not exactly a shock. You...

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Obscene Instagram post to co-worker justified dismissal

By Sooraj Sidhu and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The summary dismissal of a 47 year old employee at a major...

By Sooraj Sidhu and Lindsay Carroll, NRA Legal The summary dismissal of a 47 year old employee at a major private hospital in Sydney has been upheld by the Fair Work Commission (FWC) after finding that he sent an Instagram post “of a sexual nature” to a young nurse outside...

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Message from the CEO – July 10

As you would be aware with an imminent election, we are always on the lookout for a friendly face...

As you would be aware with an imminent election, we are always on the lookout for a friendly face in the corridors of Canberra. This enables us to cut through when we are advocating on your behalf about the challenges facing Australian retailers. But no amount of understanding can...

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Domestic Violence Leave set to arrive on 1 August 2018

On Friday 6 June 2018 the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission, in a decision published that afternoon,...

On Friday 6 June 2018 the Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission, in a decision published that afternoon, advised that it intended that Domestic Violence Leave would commence through the modern award system on 1 August 2018. Background This decision finalises a process which saw the Fair Work Commission reject...

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