Fair Work Commission

Introduction

Awards are enforceable documents containing minimum terms and conditions of employment in addition to any legislated minimum terms.

Types of awards

Awards in the national workplace relations system include two main types:

• modern awards, and
• award-based transitional instruments (including former federal and state awards created before 27 March 2006) which are being reviewed.

Modern awards

Modern awards cover a whole industry or occupation, and provide a safety net of minimum pay rates and employment conditions. Awards are used as the benchmark for assessing enterprise agreements before approval.

The Fair Work Commission is responsible for making and varying awards in the national workplace relations system. Standard clauses in modern awards include:

• award flexibility
• consultation
• dispute resolution
• types of employment
• termination of employment
• redundancy
• minimum wages
• national training wage
• allowances
• superannuation, and
• transitional provisions.

Award-based transitional instruments

The Commission is continuing the award modernisation process begun by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission. The Commission is currently reviewing:

• federal awards created before 27 March 2006 and former state awards now in the national system (notional agreements preserving State awards), which apply to a single enterprise and where the employer is a constitutional corporation, and
• State reference public sector transitional awards.