Understanding Facilitative Provisions and Flexibility Arrangements

2 July 2021

Modern awards contain facilitative provisions and / or flexibility arrangements which allow agreement between an individual employer and an employee, or the majority of employees in the workplace or a section of the workplace, to amend ordinary hours and work patterns.

These provisions can not to be used as a way of avoiding award obligations. Any facilitative or flexible working arrangement must be in writing and kept as a time and wages record by the employer. Generally, the agreement between the employer and the individual employee must also:

  • Name the parties to the agreement and be signed by the employer and the individual employee and, if the employee is under 18 years of age, the employee’s parent or guardian.
  • State each term of the award that the employer and the individual employee have agreed to vary.
  • Detail how the application of each term has been varied by agreement between the employer and the individual employee.
  • Detail how the agreement results in the individual employee being better off overall in relation to the individual employee’s terms and conditions of employment.
  • State the date the agreement commences to operate.

The following provisions can usually be utilised by agreement between the employer and an individual employee:

  • Minimum engagement of part time employees.
  • Variation to hours of part-time employees.
  • Minimum engagement for casuals.
  • Annualised salary arrangements.
  • Make up time.
  • Meal breaks.
  • Time off in lieu of payment of overtime.
  • Rest period after overtime.
  • Rest breaks.

The following provisions can usually be utilised by agreement between the employer and the majority of employees in the workplace or a section:

  • Period for casual election to convert to full-time or part-time employment.
  • Payment of wages.
  • Ordinary hours of work for day workers on weekends.
  • Variation to the spread of hours for day workers.
  • Methods of arranging ordinary working hours.
  • Variation to the spread of hours for shift workers.
  • Working in excess of five hours without a meal break.
  • Substitution of public holidays.

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