WA Department of Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety
Higher penalties have been introduced for employers who contravene state employment laws or do not provide employees their legal employment entitlements.
Under the new penalty provisions:
- maximum penalties for contravening an entitlement provision (for example, a provision of a WA award) have increased from $2,000 to $65,000 for bodies corporate and $13,000 for individuals
- maximum penalties for contravening a civil penalty provision (for example, record keeping provisions in the Industrial Relations Act) have increased from $5,000 to $65,000 for bodies corporate and $13,000 for individuals
- penalties for contravening the Long Service Leave Act have been introduced.
New maximum penalties for ‘serious contraventions’, which are knowingly committed and part of a systematic pattern of conduct, are $650,000 for bodies corporate and $130,000 for individuals.
In addition, accessorial liability provisions have been included in the Industrial Relations Act that extend liability to persons who are involved in a contravention, for example, a person who conspires with others to effect a contravention.
The new provisions commenced on 20 June 2022.
There is more information about the changes in the .
/Public Release. View in full .
