ARTICLE · 28 MARCH 2018

Time is up for maximum term contracts

Madgwicks

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Employees subject to a contract with a specific end date can now seek unfair dismissal relief upon end of the contract term. .

AustraliaEmployment and HR

In brief

The Full Bench of the Fair Work Commission has recently overturned the longstanding principle that precluded an employee subject to a contract with a specified end date from seeking unfair dismissal relief upon the expiration of the contract term.

What you need to know

Prior to this decision, the Fair Work Commission had held that when a contract for a specified period or a maximum term contract reached the nominated end date, the contract terminates through the effluxion of time and there is no termination of employment at the initiative of the employer.
Termination of employment at the initiative of the employer is a pre-requisite to seeking relief from unfair dismissal under the Fair Work Act.

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