Wages set to increase 3.3 per cent

EMPLOYERS LAUNCH ADVERTISING BLITZ AGAINST FWC WAGE DECISION Not really. In fact, the National Retail Association fully accepts the decision of...

EMPLOYERS LAUNCH ADVERTISING BLITZ AGAINST FWC WAGE DECISION Not really. In fact, the National Retail Association fully accepts the decision of the Fair Work Commission in relation to today’s 3.3 per cent increase in the minimum wage and Modern Awards, and respects the authority of the independent umpire to make the...

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Message from the CEO: 6 June 2017

The Fair Work Commission has made two important decisions affecting retailers in the last 24 hours, and it’s worth...

The Fair Work Commission has made two important decisions affecting retailers in the last 24 hours, and it’s worth considering how commentators and elected officials respond to each one. The first issue, yesterday, was the Commission’s announcement on the timing of the adjustment of Sunday penalty rates. Your feedback to...

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Employers launch advertising blitz against FWC wage decision

Small business owners will be worse off Retailers demand Parliament override Commission decision Marginal seats campaign to target...

Small business owners will be worse off Retailers demand Parliament override Commission decision Marginal seats campaign to target MPS who accept Commission verdict Not really. In fact, the National Retail Association fully accepts the decision of the Fair Work Commission in relation to today’s 3.3 per cent increase in the...

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Proposed Changes to VIC Workplace Health and Safety Laws

by Sid Sidhu and Troy Wild,  NRA Legal A new Bill, introduced to Victorian Parliament earlier this month, proposes to...

by Sid Sidhu and Troy Wild,  NRA Legal A new Bill, introduced to Victorian Parliament earlier this month, proposes to amend the Occupational Health and Safety Act 2004 (Vic) (‘the Act’) as well as some other legislation, including the Dangerous Goods Act 1985 (Vic). If passed, the new changes may...

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Decision on penalty rate transition period handed down

In February the Fair Work Commission announced its decision to reduce Sunday penalty rates in the Hospitality, Fast Food,...

In February the Fair Work Commission announced its decision to reduce Sunday penalty rates in the Hospitality, Fast Food, Retail and Pharmacy awards. At 2pm today the Commission handed down its decision on how these changes will be implemented. Fast Food Industry Award 2010  Only Level 1 employees are affected by the...

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April Figures Show Marginal Growth for Retail Trade

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) retail trade figures for April 2017 released today show minimal growth from March,...

The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) retail trade figures for April 2017 released today show minimal growth from March, indicating that the retail industry is still amidst trying times. According to the ABS, retail turnover rose 1.0 per cent during April following a fall of 0.2 per cent in March...

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Recognising Australia’s diverse retail leaders

The National Retail Association (NRA) has launched its new-look annual awards program, with a strong focus on inclusion and...

The National Retail Association (NRA) has launched its new-look annual awards program, with a strong focus on inclusion and celebrating diversity, recognising not only retail businesses, but the people behind them. The 2017 awards will recognise people and businesses at all levels of the industry – from fast food franchisees...

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Message from the CEO: 30 May 2017

Consumers are the driving force behind all retail business. They shop around their lives, not the other way around, so...

Consumers are the driving force behind all retail business. They shop around their lives, not the other way around, so we need to be able to offer them choice, convenience and value. If we don’t, they’ll simply find someone else who does. We are the forefront of digital disruption, and trading...

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Unfair dismissal case actually “genuine redundancy”

by Sid Sidhu and Troy Wild, NRA legal Case study: Laura Wrzoskiewicz v Easy Payroll Perth Pty Ltd FWC...

by Sid Sidhu and Troy Wild, NRA legal Case study: Laura Wrzoskiewicz v Easy Payroll Perth Pty Ltd FWC 2469 A recent case before the Fair Work Commission highlights the meaning of “genuine redundancy” and when an employee will be unable to substantiate an unfair dismissal claim. In this case, a...

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Putting leadership learning into practice

While hard skills and technical know-how are important, the difficulty is often finding someone who has those skills and...

While hard skills and technical know-how are important, the difficulty is often finding someone who has those skills and the leadership skills needed to develop an effective and efficient team. Many of our members are asking for the NRA Training Team to deliver one or two day workshops focusing on...

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Top 5 reasons to use an insurance broker

by Alain Sayour, Gow Gates Insurance Brokers We live in an age where many of our life and business transactions...

by Alain Sayour, Gow Gates Insurance Brokers We live in an age where many of our life and business transactions can be completed online. The ease in conducting these transactions at a time and place that suits us certainly has an appeal. However, is going online the best option when...

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Confidence lifts for third time in past month

Source: CommSec - Economic Insights According to Commsec, the ANZ/Roy Morgan consumer confidence rating rose by 1.0 per cent to 110.5 in...

Source: CommSec - Economic Insights According to Commsec, the ANZ/Roy Morgan consumer confidence rating rose by 1.0 per cent to 110.5 in the latest week – the third rise in the past four weeks. Confidence levels bounce around from week to week, but CommSec believes that broadly Aussie consumers are just feeling OK. "If...

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Message from the CEO: 23 May 2017

As you know, the NRA has been deeply concerned about the proposed Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Bill since...

As you know, the NRA has been deeply concerned about the proposed Fair Work Amendment (Protecting Vulnerable Workers) Bill since it was introduced to Parliament in March. Our concerns have been amplified after the Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee released its report this week, recommending the Federal Government pass...

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Employer forced to pay employee for ‘harsh’ porn dismissal

Written by Alex Millman and Troy Wild, NRA Legal On 24 April 2017 the New South Wales Industrial Relations Commission...

Written by Alex Millman and Troy Wild, NRA Legal On 24 April 2017 the New South Wales Industrial Relations Commission awarded compensation to a State employee who had been fired after pornographic emails, including images of naked children, were found in her work email account. The employer argued that the employee...

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Commsec: Aussies spending on experiences

We’re going to the cinema, taking short breaks and focusing on holidays, with tourist destinations like Tasmania recording healthy...

We’re going to the cinema, taking short breaks and focusing on holidays, with tourist destinations like Tasmania recording healthy spending results despite lacklustre overall spending, according to the latest data from Commsec research. Craig James, Chief Economist at Commsec has reported that economy-wide spending has remained flat over April, with...

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Tackling rental overheads – negotiating mid-term

Rental overheads are the biggest challenge keeping retailers awake at night, according to Inside Retail’s 2017 Australian Retail Outlook....

Rental overheads are the biggest challenge keeping retailers awake at night, according to Inside Retail’s 2017 Australian Retail Outlook. Leasing expert, Kyle Swain, explores the current issues and trends in leasing and the best ways for retailers to negotiate better terms. By Kyle Swain, The Leasing Department Over the past three...

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