HR Leader

| |8 minute read The Federal Court delivered a scathing judgment in the underpayment proceedings brought against Coles and Woolworths, having found there was a lack of factual foundation to support specific findings. Coles and Woolworths employees who alleged they were underpaid expected to learn whether they would be entitled to compensation on Friday (5 September) morning – instead, the Federal Court sent them back to a case management hearing to iron out several concerns.

| |6 minute read A solicitor’s former workplace has restrained her new lawyers from acting for her in a confidentiality matter. Banga Legal and principal solicitor Samir Banga were successful in their NSW Supreme Court application to restrain Solve Legal from acting for one of its former employed solicitors, Jessica Townsend.

| |6 minute read Junior doctors across Tasmania are pursuing the state’s first wage-theft class action, demanding compensation for years of unrostered and unpaid overtime. Tasmania’s junior doctors are taking a historic stand against unpaid, unrostered overtime by launching the state’s first wage-theft class action in the Supreme Court, demanding repayments for the years of uncompensated work performed at the Royal Hobart Hospital and Launceston General Hospital.

| |6 minute read One of the biggest downsides to micromanagement is the barrier it creates to turning high achievers into high performers, writes Travis Schultz. Ever wondered what a micromanager might say if you asked them whether they exert too much control over the way their subordinates do their job? “Not me”, perhaps?

| |5 minute read The Fair Work Commission has released its 2024 report card outlining the most common financial reporting mistakes made by firms. In its 2024 financial reporting report card, the Fair Work Commission found that 70 per cent of financial reports were compliant, a slight fall from 2023 compliance levels (75 per cent).

| |8 minute read The University of Technology, Sydney (UTS) says it remains committed to a “full and meaningful consultation” to address the issues facing the tertiary institution, in the wake of a prohibition notice from SafeWork NSW regarding its reported planned job and course cuts. As was widely reported yesterday (Wednesday 3 September), the NSW workplace regulator has issued a prohibition notice to UTS’ plans to axe up to hundreds of jobs, as well as several courses.

| |8 minute read The Federal Court was told the ABC should receive a penalty of up to $350,000 for the illegal sacking of Antoinette Lattouf. In submissions handed up to the Federal Court on Wednesday (3 September), counsel Oshie Fagir and Philip Boncardo said the ABC’s illegal firing of Antoinette Lattouf in late 2023 justified “substantial deterrent penalties” of between $300,000 and $350,000.

| |6 minute read New research has found that over half of Aussie employers were approached by their employees about their right to disconnect (RTD), while its implementation was received differently across different states. An independent study was conducted in July 2025 by specialist recruiter Robert Half, which involved a sample space of 500 hiring managers in finance and accounting, IT and technology and human resources, to delve into statistics regarding the 2024 RTD implementation.

| |6 minute read In a landmark ruling, the High Court of Australia has unanimously sided with a Queensland man devastated by negligent hospital care, creating far-reaching implications for Australians living with catastrophic injuries.

The real path to AI value is incremental, focused, and relentlessly pragmatic, writes Dr Gleb Tsipursky. A dangerous narrative is taking hold among leadership teams across the country, a story of effortless, overnight transformation powered by artificial intelligence. It is a seductive mirage shimmering in the desert of corporate ambition, promising untold riches and seamless automation from a technology that is still in its turbulent adolescence.