Government puts casual conversion back on the agenda

In July, IR Minister, Tony Burke, announced plans to seek refinement of existing casual conversion provisions – introduced by the Morrison Government in 2021 – to make conversion to permanency even easier for eligible casuals who seek it, whilst also pursuing a “practical definition” of casual employment, wherein it will be necessary to ask, “what’s really going on”, in order to accurately define the employment relationship.

Whilst detail on the proposed changes remains limited as consultations continue, Minister Burke outlined the Government’s desire to “close the loophole that leaves people stuck as casuals when they actually work permanent regular hours”, although “much of the existing [casual conversion] framework” will reportedly be retained.

Minister Burke recently observed, “If you are working a regular shift that doesn’t change, and you and the employer know that’s the shift and you would like to say ‘I’d rather switch out the loading and get leave instead so that I know my hours are locked in’ and so that if a child’s sick, I can take a day off without wondering whether or not I’ll be able to pay the bills that week… That’s something that should be available for Australian workers”. Minister Burke also lamented the current definition of casual employment which he says created a situation in which “you can be working a full-time roster for a year and you still get classed as a casual”, noting the Albanese Government favours “what the definition always was before [the Morrison Government legislated it]”, which looked at “whether or not you were in fact working as a casual or whether in fact you were working permanent hours”.

Although a long way from the finish line, Minister Burke stressed that any changes to casual conversion would only apply prospectively, meaning no option for backpay (of permanent entitlements) could be enlivened. In addition, no casual will be “forced” to convert to permanent employment. The Minister commented that strengthening casual conversion provisions will help more than 850,000 casual workers who have regular work arrangements by giving them greater access to leave entitlements and more financial security – if they desire it – but he conceded that “most will not take up the opportunity”.

IR expert, Professor Andrew Stewart, agreed with Minister Burke’s assessment of workforce appetite for casual conversion saying, “we’re not going to see a large number of workers converting because most long-term casuals can’t afford to or don’t feel they want to”. This sentiment was mirrored by ACCI Chief Executive, Andrew McKellar, who has been quoted as saying that, in practice, “only 1–2 per cent” of eligible casuals elect to convert to permanent employment.