NO CHANGE TO CLUB AWARD PENALTY RATES

The Fair Work Commission this week denied an application by Clubs Australia to bring overtime and weekend rates for clubs into line with other hospitality industry companies after the Commission’s decision to reduce penalty rates in the Hospitality Award in 2017.

Clubs Australia – Industrial (CAI), applied for the Registered and Licensed Clubs Award 2010 (Clubs Award), to be revoked, and for the Hospitality Industry (General) Award 2010 (Hospitality Award) to be varied to expand its coverage to encompass that of the Clubs Award. The purpose was to ask for a reduction in weekend and public holiday penalty rates in the Clubs Award and bring it into line with rates on those days paid by other hospitality venues.

For smaller and regional clubs in particular this means they remain paying higher overtime rates than busy hospitality venues in Sydney, and more than casino staff are paid for weekend and public holiday work.

The application has now been dismissed, with the Commission ruling that clubs should continue to pay a higher rate of pay because they are not-for-profit organisations. The effect of the decision means there will continue to be a separate Clubs Award and clubs do not need to make any change to their current pay arrangements.