Industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations regularly conduct proactive campaigns of businesses in the state industrial relations system to ensure that employees are receiving their correct entitlements and that business owners are complying with their record keeping obligations.
Our current campaigns and recently completed campaigns are detailed below.
Current campaigns
Café and restaurant businesses – November 2023
Private Sector Labour Relations is continuing the cafes and restaurants compliance campaign focussed on the café and restaurant sector in the Mandurah/Rockingham area of WA covered by the state industrial relations system.
During the campaign, inspectors will conduct unannounced inspections at businesses to talk to employers and employees, inspect available employment records and issue notices requiring the production of employment records for assessment.
On completion of the campaign, employers will be notified of the findings. If any breaches of State employment laws are identified, employers will be requested to rectify the breaches to ensure compliance.
Previous campaigns
Café and restaurant businesses - March 2023
Show morePrivate Sector Labour Relations conducted a proactive compliance campaign in March 2023 focussed on cafes and restaurant businesses in the state industrial relations system in the south-west of WA.
During the campaign, industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations inspected businesses to check whether employees were receiving their correct pay rates and entitlements, and that business owners were complying with their record keeping obligations.
Hairdressing industry employers - March 2022
Show morePrivate Sector Labour Relations commenced a proactive compliance campaign in March 2022 focused on employing hairdressing industry businesses in the state industrial relations system.
During the campaign, businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to check whether employees were receiving their correct pay rates and entitlements, and whether business owners were maintaining correct employment records.
Café and restaurant businesses - 2019 to 2020
Show morePrivate Sector Labour Relations initiated the cafés and restaurants compliance campaign to ensure that employees working in the café and restaurant sector covered by the state industrial relations system were receiving their correct pay rates and entitlements, and whether business owners were maintaining correct employment records.
The campaign commenced in October 2019, with café and restaurant businesses subsequently visited by industrial inspectors to audit employment records. In March 2020, the campaign was suspended for a period of time due to COVID-19.
Due to the high level of non-compliance by cafés and restaurants in the state industrial relation system, Private Sector Labour Relations continued to proactively inspect café and restaurant businesses during 2021-22.
Industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations audited 125 cafes and restaurants during the 2021-22 financial year, recovering a total of $180,416 in underpayments on behalf of employees.
Horticulture employers - August 2021
Show morePrivate Sector Labour Relations commenced a proactive compliance campaign in August 2021 focused on horticulture industry businesses in the state industrial relations system.
During the campaign, businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to check whether employees were receiving their correct pay rates and entitlements, and whether business owners were maintaining correct employment records.
Beauty salons - 2019
Show moreThis state-wide education campaign focussed on minimum rates of pay and staff entitlements for workers in beauty salons operating in the state industrial relations system.
In July 2019 over 500 businesses across Western Australia were provided with information on the minimum conditions for employees in this industry.
Following the education phase of this campaign, selected beauty salon businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to ensure that employees received the correct rates of pay and entitlements and that business owners were maintaining correct employment records.
Employment of children in takeaway food businesses - 2019
Show moreThe takeaway food industry is a significant employer of young people in Western Australia. The Children and Community Services Act 2004 (CCS Act) restricts when children under 15 can work in takeaway food businesses, and a proactive campaign to improve compliance with the child employment laws was launched in April 2019.
As part of the education stage of this campaign, Wageline sent hundreds of takeaway food businesses across Western Australia information about their obligations for employing children.
Following the education component of the campaign, a select number of businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to ensure that children were not being employed or otherwise engaged in breach of the CCS Act.
Nail salons - 2018 and 2019
Show morePrivate Sector Labour Relations Division industrial inspectors have found that one in four nail salons were non-compliant with state employment laws in a proactive compliance campaign conducted in the year to June 2019.
Nail salon businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to ensure that employees were receiving their correct pay rate entitlements, and that business owners were maintaining correct employment records.
The findings from this proactive compliance campaign have been released and can be viewed in the Nail Salons Proactive Compliance Campaign Evaluation Report.
Horse riding schools and equestrian centres - 2018
Show moreThe Children and Community Services Act 2004 (CCS Act) prohibits children under 15 working in horse riding schools and equestrian centres. In September 2018, Private Sector Labour Relations commenced a campaign to promote compliance by horse riding schools and equestrian centre businesses with the child employment laws.
Following the education component of the campaign, selected businesses were audited by industrial inspectors from Private Sector Labour Relations to ensure that children were not being employed or otherwise engaged in breach of the CCS Act.
Of the 78 businesses included in the compliance audit, no breaches were identified, with a majority of businesses returning Compliance undertaking forms confirming that children under the age of 15 years of age were not employed.
