We assist clients to manage every part of the employment relationship, from drafting initial employment contracts and policies, addressing performance issues and warnings, and effecting dismissals and redundancies.

This includes advising employers on the applicable minimum terms and conditions which they have to meet, including Modern Award interpretation and advice, assisting employers to manage and adequately respond to complaints from employees or interactions with the Fair Work Ombudsman, and managing and implementing organisational changes.

We also act for employers in any subsequent matters that could arise as a result of the end of an employment relationship, including the negotiation of executive separation packages, representation in unfair dismissal or adverse action claims, or in litigation for breach of contract or underpayment claims.

Industrial relations covers a wide range of activities from changing shift patterns and work schedules to negotiating enterprise agreements and responding to industrial action. We represent companies of all sizes across all aspects of their industrial relations issues.

We assist with the development and implementation of initial IR strategies, the negotiation of enterprise agreements with employees and Unions, managing the risk of, and responding to, protected and unprotected industrial action, and assisting during the agreement approval process with Fair Work Australia.

We provide advice and representation during disputation on all issues from enterprise agreement interpretations to large and small scale workplace changes and redundancies.

We also assist employers with advice on certain industry specific compliance obligations including Code Compliance in the building and construction industry, and AMSA requirements for seafarers in Australia.

Occupational health and safety obligations are an important issue for all employers and employees, with consequences of failing to meet these obligations dangerous to individuals and costly for employers. Getting it right is in everyone’s interest.

We assist clients with their interactions with Work Safe including Work Safe conducted investigations and criminal prosecutions.
We also assist clients to manage safety issues raised by employees, Heath and Safety Representatives and Unions.

In addition, we provide advice on all aspects of occupational health and safety legislation across all Australian jurisdictions, particualarly since not all States have adopted the model national occupational health and safety laws – the Work Health and Safety Act.

We also advise clients on their obligations under workers compensation legislation with respect to rehabilitation and return to work, the performance management of injured employees, and advice and representation in disputation with insurers.

There are equal opportunity and discrimination laws at both State and Federal level. These laws often overlap and operate simultaneously with a range of other employment laws and workers compensation and OHS laws. This creates a highly complex regulatory environment which can be difficult to navigate successfully. We guide our clients through these laws and their obligations under the various statutes with appropriate advice and representation.

ZWL also represents clients before each discrimination Tribunal in Australian States and Territories.

We provide advice as assistance to clients on managing their obligations under these laws with respect to recruitment practices, managing employee complaints and performance, and training their own human resources staff on this varied and complex landscape.

A business’s intellectual property and confidentiality is one of its most important commercial assets, however protecting that asset can be complicated and the consequences of not doing so costly.

We assist business to protect this information through drafting appropriate confidentiality agreements and deeds, providing advice on how best to utilise laws for the protection of intellectual property and confidentiality, and advice and representation in litigation to enforce those rights when commercially effective to do so.

Through accessing the resources provided by Peacemaker ADR, Zeitz Workplace Lawyers is able to provide a range of non legal services to clients that complements the services set out above.

These include conducting workplace investigations, bullying investigation, grievance hearings, workplace training generally and to specific human resources officers.

Issues in the workplace can be complex and multifaceted. Through accessing the services of either Zeitz Workplace Lawyers, or Peacemaker ADR we are able to cost effectively address each of those issues and provide our clients with a complete business solution.