AS THE COVID-19 vaccination continues its rollout across Australia, there is increased talk on whether or not it should be made compulsory in the workplace.

Last week SPC became the first Australian company to require all onsite staff and visitors be vaccinated by November, a move unions have described as ‘unrealistic’. Other companies are expected to follow suit.

According to SME workplace advisory firm Employsure, SPC aside, all vaccine mandates for workers such as those in the aged care and health care sectors have previously only been made by governments under public health orders. So while employers like SPC may seek to mandate vaccinations for the health of their staff, there is currently no law that will specifically allow them to enforce it.  

“Employers who want their staff vaccinated may see themselves hit with a Fair Work claim if that employee is sacked as a result of refusing the jab,” Employsure health and safety manager,  Larry Drewsen said.

“As it stands, employers cannot force an employee to get the jab. While we may see circumstances change as vaccination rates continue to climb, employers should tread with caution and maintain open communication with their employees over their workplace vaccination rights, responsibilities and options.

“While employers cannot force an employee to get the jab, they must however, continue to do everything reasonably practicable to reduce the risk to health and safety in the workplace.”

Mr Drewsen said while employers are unable to mandate it, they can ask the question to their employees on whether or not they want the jab. Employers can suggest staff get the vaccine, provide them with relevant government health advice, and allow them to take time off during the workday if only weekday appointments are available.

Workers do not however, have to tell their employer if they have been vaccinated, or even give a reason behind it," Mr Drewsen said. "To keep on the safe side, employers should assume a worker is unvaccinated if they withhold this information, and inform that worker of their assumption."

"While some worksites may be at higher risk than others, it shouldn’t stop employers in lower risk settings from keeping track of which employees have been vaccinated. Employee management software like BrightHR’s Vacctrak feature allows employers to monitor who is fully, partially, or not vaccinated against COVID-19 in the workplace.

“Employers have an obligation to take reasonably practicable steps to ensure a safe workplace, and health advice indicates vaccinations are a critical component if we are to successfully come out of this pandemic. As they cannot legally enforce it, employers should consult with employees who are unable, or don’t want the COVID-19 vaccination, and discuss alternative measures that can help them do their job safely,” Mr Drewsen said.

“The Federal Government has stated mandatory vaccinations will not happen in Australia. While vaccinations form part of a business’s methods of controlling the risk of infection, employers must therefore have other plans in place if workers refuse.

“For employers who follow SPC’s lead and make vaccines mandatory to continue on-site work, by doing so it could lead to legal challenges in the future. Employers must be prepared for that and weigh up alternatives to mandatory vaccinations if it comes to it.”

www.employsure.com.au

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AUSTRALIANS in dispute with banks, insurers, superannuation funds, investment firms and financial advisers lodged more than 70,000 complaints with the Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) in the past 12 months.

They secured more than $240 million in compensation and refunds after seeking AFCA’s help, as well as outcomes such as fee waivers, debt forgiveness and apologies. 

In addition, AFCA’s investigations into a range of systemic issues resulted in remediation payments to consumers totalling nearly $32 million in the past financial year.

AFCA has now helped to secure more than $610 million in compensation and refunds, and over $220 million in remediation payments, since starting operation on November 1, 2018.

In 2020-21, individual consumers and small businesses – who can also access the free ombudsman service – made 70,510 complaints to AFCA.

A preliminary data 'snapshot' as of June 30 also shows that nearly 70 percent of cases were resolved by agreement after AFCA brought the parties together, and that nearly 60 percent of cases were resolved within 60 days.

The most complained about product in 2020-21 was credit cards, accounting for 14 percent of all complaints, followed by home loans (9 percent) and personal transaction accounts (8 percent). With credit cards, the most common issues were default listings and unauthorised transactions – the latter accounting for 11 percent of card complaints.

Government support, business relief measures and a steadying economy had a positive effect on complaint levels in 2020-21, including complaints involving financial difficulty, AFCA’s chief ombudsman, David Locke said. 

“Significantly, complaints involving financial difficulty were down nearly 40 percent from the numbers we saw the previous year,” Mr Locke said. “That’s a great outcome and reflects the positive response from government and industry to the impact of COVID. 

“However, it’s too early to say we’re out of the woods yet. It may be some months before we know the full impact of the end of government emergency support and assistance from financial firms such as deferred loan repayments. And, of course, we are still living with COVID-19.

“It’s important that consumers and financial service providers continue to work together to resolve issues quickly as they emerge,” Mr Locke said. “The past 12 months show what’s possible when that happens.” 

Overall, complaints were down 12 percent on 2019-20, a year that included the initial months of the COVID-19 pandemic and a spike in complaints in areas such as travel insurance.

In 2020-21, there were 8,303 COVID-related complaints, up from 5,013 in just four months at the end of 2019-20 after the pandemic was officially declared. That translates to an average of 692 a month in 2020-21, down sharply from an average of 1,253 a month from March through June 2020.

The past 12 months included 165 complaints related to insurance cover for business interruption associated with COVID-19. More complaints are expected in the coming year, once the second of two test cases brought by the insurance industry is resolved.

The AFCA data for 2020-21 also shows travel insurance complaints down 22 percent, as Australians stayed at home, and superannuation complaints down 31 percent, after a jump the prior year when the government allowed the early release of super at the start of COVID. 

On the other hand, complaints related to personal transaction accounts rose 48 percent, with unauthorised transactions accounting for 29 percent of those complaints. Also, complaints about electronic banking increased 76 percent, with unauthorised transactions accounting for 28 percent of those complaints and mistaken internet payments accounting for a further 19 percent.

“There’s no single reason for these increases but people transacting online more during COVID will have contributed,” Mr Locke said. “Scams, which have accelerated during the pandemic, are also leading to growing complaints about transactions.”

Complaints about sales of funeral insurance in Indigenous communities continued to be troubling in 2020-21, Mr Locke said. “There’s a pattern of poor conduct in regional and remote communities that’s concerning.”

One provider accounted for 98 percent of funeral insurance-related complaints and was the subject of multiple determinations in favour of complainants.

About AFCA

• The Australian Financial Complaints Authority (AFCA) is a non-government ombudsman service providing free, fair and independent help with financial disputes.
• It is a one-stop-shop for consumers and small businesses who have a dispute with their financial firm, in areas such as banking, credit, insurance, advice, investments and super.
• Where an agreement cannot be reached between parties, AFCA can issue decisions that are binding on financial firms.
• AFCA has searchable public data on financial complaints available at data.afca.org.au.

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THE Australian Small Business and Family Enterprise Ombudsman, Bruce Billson has urged struggling small and family businesses to be proactive at tax time, as a new report reveals declining payment plans, despite record collectible debt owed to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO).

Mr Billson said the report, released today by the Inspector General of Taxation and Taxation Ombudsman (IGTO), shows that although SMEs owe $21 billion to the ATO – well over half of this collectible debt is held by just 6.4 percent of SMEs.

 “The vast majority of small business owners are doing the right thing and complying with their tax obligations,” Mr Billson said. 

“This report shows that while collectible debt owed by small businesses to the ATO has reached an all-time-high, in reality the breakdown sees the majority of debt owed by very few SMEs while the remainder is very small amounts of debt spread over a small percentage of Australia’s more than 2 million SMEs.

“In fact, less that one percent of small businesses owe $2.5 billion to the ATO, according to the IGTO’s report.”

Mr Billson said the reported decline in small business payment plan arrangements over the past three years is a concern.

“For those small businesses that are struggling to meet their tax obligations, now is not the time to put your head in the sand,” Mr Billson said.

“Small businesses are strongly encouraged to get on the front foot by lodging now and reaching out to the ATO – either online or by phone – for a tailored payment plan, if having difficulties meeting payment obligations.

“The ATO has told my office it is also introducing a system for payment plans in arrears to give small and family businesses a chance to get back on track rather than falling into default and having to start again.

“While the ATO is signalling plans to return to collection action, which it relaxed during the pandemic, it has also indicated to my office that its predominant strategy is to support and assist small businesses wherever possible," Mr Billson said.

“The ATO has acted on key recommendations in ASBFEO’s report: A tax system that works for small business to turn its small business independent review service into a permanent offering.

“This is in addition to the Australian Government giving the Administrative Appeals Tribunal (AAT) greater powers to pause or change debt recovery action applied to small businesses in dispute with the ATO.”

Small businesses engaged in a tax dispute are encouraged to contact ASBFEO for assistance on 1300 650 460 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

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