Considered as the best asset of any business are their employees so that recruitment and retaining the right people is necessary for the success of any business operations.

For employees to create value and return on investment both the needs of the employees and the employer must be met. Employers’ should know their legal obligations along with strategies to develop the skills of their working force.

Hiring People – A guide to hiring the right employees can be found on the FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN’s which will help your workforce in getting started to be on the right tract. The guide covers the following:

Know the Law– this section discusses wages, record-keeping, superannuation, taxation, workplace health and safety and discrimination.

Thinking about Hiring – this will give you an idea on your current and future requirements and define the role you wanted.

• Attract the right people- get the right people through advertisements
• Choose the right person – make a shortlist of applicants depending on their skills
• Offer of employment- Here you prepare a letter of offer specifying work information statement, policies in the workplace and tax file declaration.
• Start on the right foot – tour the new employee in the workplace, discuss the overview of the business, rules and responsibilities, business policies, workplace health and safety.
• Have a productive workplace – meetings with employees to discuss company goals and expectations, identifying their training needs and formulation of plans to ensure that all your needs are addressed.

Employer Obligations

Under the Fair Work Act 2009, employers’ rights and obligations are cited. This includes granting employees their correct entitlements.

Best Practice Checklist:

Do you know which award your business was covered before Jan 1, 2010 and which modern award you are covered from Jan 1, 2010? Have you put in place all arrangements to comply with the National Employment Standards and do you keep records and give your employees their pay slips? Do you know how to bargain in good faith and do you follow the Fair Dismissal Code in terminating an employees’ employment?

Employee Entitlement –All these are set out in the National Employment Standards (NES) and awards.

Complaints, Disputes and Employee Relations. The Fair Work Ombudsmans’ website has an online learning centre with free interactive courses that may help both employees and employers resolve their conflicts.

Ending Employment – There are many reasons why employment ends, it may be due to employee resignation or dismissal. It is necessary that the rules about dismissal notice and the final pay are given to the employee concerned.