Murray Furlong, the General Manager of the Fair Work Commission (“the Commission”), issued a statement on 29 May 2026 regarding proposed and planned changes at the Commission. The changes are in response to:
- A significant increase in workload.
- An increase in self-represented applicants.
- Budget constraints.
- Resourcing challenges.
- Proliferation of generative AI tools.
Based on the statement by Furlong, the FWC is responding to the emergence of GenAI through an AI-assisted agreement checklist assistant and an AI-assisted helpline. This is to improve the operating environment at the Commission which has a direct impact on the Commission’s ability to provide timely, efficient and effective dispute resolution services to the community.
AI-assisted agreement checklist
The Commission is developing an Agreement Checklist Assistant which utilises GenAI to support the Commission staff carrying out pre-approval checks for enterprise agreement applications.
The aim of this function will be to help staff identify whether there are any concerns, including if an application is complete, accurate, and compliant and whether it may not pass the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT) before it is passed through to a Commission Member.
AI-assisted helpline
Additionally, to assist in managing the workload of high-volume calls that are received daily, the Commission is considering implementing an AI voice agent to assist in triaging helpline calls and improve service delivery. The AI voice agent would then be the public’s first point of contact with the helpline.
The aim of this is to reduce call wait times and redirect queries as soon as possible if the Commission is not the appropriate body for the call.
An initial proof-of-concept has been developed, and the viability of the product is currently being assessed, with the consideration of whether to allocate resources to development and delivery.
If you would like more information on these changes or would like guidance on how to respond to the emergence of AI within your workplace, contact us via the link below.