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FAIR WORK ACT 1994 - SECT 4

4—Interpretation

        (1)         In this Act, unless the contrary intention appears—

"adult" means a person of or above 21 years of age;

"apprentice" means an apprentice or trainee within the meaning of the South Australian Skills Act 2008 ;

"association" means—

            (a)         an association, society or body formed to represent, protect or further the interests of employers or employees; or

            (b)         an organisation, or a branch of an organisation, registered under the Commonwealth (Registered Organisations) Act;

"award" means an order of SAET regulating remuneration or other industrial matters;

"child" means a person who has not attained the age of 18 years;

"Commonwealth Act" means the Fair Work Act 2009 of the Commonwealth;

"Commonwealth (Registered Organisations) Act" means the Fair Work (Registered Organisations) Act 2009 of the Commonwealth;

"Consultative Council" means the Industrial Relations Consultative Council ;

"contract of employment" means—

            (a)         a contract recognised at common law as a contract of employment under which a person is employed for remuneration in an industry; or

            (b)         a contract under which a person (the "employer") engages another (the "employee") to drive a vehicle that is not registered in the employee's name to provide a public passenger service (even though the contract would not be recognised at common law as a contract of employment); or

Exception—

The contract is not a contract of employment if the vehicle is a taxi and the contract would not be recognised at common law as a contract of employment.

            (c)         a contract under which a person (the "employer") engages another (the "employee") to carry out personally the work of cleaning premises (even though the contract would not be recognised at common law as a contract of employment); or

            (d)         a contract under which a person (the "employer") engages another (the "employee") to carry out work as an outworker (even though the contract would not be recognised at common law as a contract of employment);

"decision" includes a refusal or failure to make a decision;

"demarcation dispute" includes—

            (a)         a dispute within an association or between associations about the rights, status or functions of members of the association or associations in relation to the employment of those members; or

            (b)         a dispute between employers and employees, or between members of different associations, about the demarcation of functions of employees or classes of employees; or

            (c)         a dispute about the representation under this Act of the industrial interests of employees by an association of employees;

"determination" means an award, order, declaration, approval or decision;

"domestic partner" means a person who is a domestic partner within the meaning of the Family Relationships Act 1975 , whether declared as such under that Act or not;

"employee" means a person employed for remuneration under a contract of employment and includes a public employee;

"employer" means—

            (a)         for public employees—see section 4A;

            (b)         for other employees—a person who employs the employees for remuneration in an industry under a contract of employment;

"enterprise agreement" means an agreement under Chapter 3 Part 2 of this Act between 1 or more employers and a group of employees regulating remuneration or other industrial matters (and includes a provisional enterprise agreement);

"Equal Remuneration Convention" means the Convention Concerning Equal Remuneration for Men and Women Workers for Work of Equal Value set out in Schedule 6;

"Fair Work Commission" means the Fair Work Commission established under the Commonwealth Act (or an industrial authority that takes the place of the Fair Work Commission under Commonwealth law);

"family"—the following are to be regarded as members of a person's family

            (a)         a spouse or domestic partner;

            (b)         a child;

            (c)         a parent;

            (d)         any other member of the person's household;

            (e)         any other person who is dependent on the person's care;

"group of employees"—see subsection (2);

(indexed) —see subsection (4);

"industrial action" means—

            (a)         a work practice, or a way of performing work, adopted in connection with an industrial dispute, that restricts, limits or delays the performance of the work; or

            (b)         a ban, limitation, or restriction affecting the performance of work, or the offering or acceptance of work; or

            (c)         a failure or refusal in connection with an industrial dispute to attend for work, or to perform work,

but does not include action taken by an employer with the agreement of the employees, or action taken by employees with the agreement of the employer;

"industrial authority" means—

            (a)         SAET; or

            (b)         a commission, court, board, tribunal, or body having authority under the law of the Commonwealth or another State to exercise powers of conciliation, determination or arbitration in industrial matters; or

            (c)         a body declared by regulation to be an industrial authority for the purposes of this definition;

"industrial dispute" means a dispute, or a threatened, impending or probable dispute, about an industrial matter (and an industrial dispute does not come to an end only because the parties, or some of them, cease to be in the relationship of employer and employee);

"industrial instrument" means—

            (a)         an award or enterprise agreement under this Act; or

            (b)         a fair work instrument under the Commonwealth Act; or

            (c)         an instrument (but not an Australian workplace agreement) given continuing effect under the Fair Work (Transitional Provisions and Consequential Amendments) Act 2009 of the Commonwealth;

"industrial matter" means a matter affecting or relating to the rights, privileges or duties of an employer or employers (including a prospective employer or prospective employers) or an employee or employees (including a prospective employee or prospective employees), or the work to be done in employment, including, for example—

            (a)         the wages, allowances or remuneration of employees or prospective employees in an industry, or the piece-work, contract or other prices paid or to be paid for the employment, including any loading or amount that may be included in wages, allowances, remuneration or prices as compensation for lost time and the wages, allowances or remuneration to be paid for work done during overtime or on holidays, or for other special work, and also the question whether piece-work will be allowed in an industry;

            (b)         the hours of employment in an industry, including the lengths of time to be worked, and the quantum of work or service to be done, to entitle employees to any given wages, allowances, remuneration or prices, and what times are to be regarded as overtime;

            (c)         the age, qualification or status of employees, and the manner, terms and conditions of employment;

            (d)         the relationship between an employer and an apprentice (and any matter relating to employment arising between an employer and an apprentice);

            (e)         the employment of juniors and apprentices in an industry (including the number or proportion that may be employed);

            (f)         the employment of any person, or of any class of persons, in addition to those referred to above, in an industry;

            (fa)         matters in an industrial instrument relating to wage parity;

            (g)         the refusal or neglect, without reasonable cause or excuse, of any person bound by an award, order or enterprise agreement to offer or accept employment, or to continue to be employed on the terms of the award, order or agreement;

            (h)         any established or allegedly established custom or usage of an industry, either generally or in a particular locality;

                  (i)         the monetary value of allowances granted to or enjoyed by employees;

            (j)         the dismissal of an employee by an employer;

            (k)         a demarcation dispute;

            (ka)         any matter affecting or relating to the performance of work by outworkers, including—

                  (i)         the giving out of work which is to be performed (or is reasonably likely to be performed), directly or indirectly, by an outworker;

                  (ii)         the regulation of any person who gives out work which is to be performed (or is reasonably likely to be performed), directly or indirectly, by an outworker;

                  (iii)         the creation of 1 or more contracts (including a series of contracts) dealing with the performance of work by outworkers;

                  (iv)         the terms or conditions under which work is performed by outworkers;

                  (v)         the protection of outworkers in any other respect;

            (l)         the performance of work nude or partially nude, or in transparent clothing;

            (m)         a matter classified as an industrial matter by regulation;

            (n)         all questions of what is right and fair in relation to an industrial matter having regard to the interests of the persons immediately concerned and of society as a whole;

"industry" means a trade, business or occupation in which employees are employed;

"inspector"—see section 219A;

"junior" means an employee under the age of 21 years (but not an apprentice);

"legal practitioner" means a person admitted to practise the profession of the law in this State;

"order" includes direction;

"organisation" means an organisation registered under the Commonwealth (Registered Organisations) Act;

"outworker"—see section 5;

"peak entity" means—

            (a)         the Minister; and

            (b)         the United Trades and Labor Council; and

            (c)         the South Australian Employers' Chamber of Commerce and Industry Incorporated; and

            (e)         any other body brought within the ambit of this definition by the regulations;

"place" includes—

            (a)         a building or structure; and

            (b)         a vehicle; and

            (c)         a ship or vessel;

"President" means the President of SAET;

"public employee" means—

            (a)         a public sector employee, within the meaning of the Public Sector Act 2009 , employed under, or subject to, that Act; or

            (b)         any other person employed for salary or wages in the service of the State;

"registered agent" means a person who is entitled to represent a party in proceedings before SAET by registration as an agent under this Act (See Chapter 2 Part 3);

"registered association" means an association (which may include an organisation or branch) registered under Chapter 4 (Associations);

"Registrar" means the Registrar or Deputy Registrar of SAET;

"remuneration" means—

            (a)         wages or salary; or

            (b)         payment to or for the benefit of an employee in the nature of piece-work rates, penalty rates, shift premiums, overtime or special work rates; or

            (c)         allowances;

"rules" means the rules of SAET;

"SAET" means the South Australian Employment Tribunal established under the South Australian Employment Tribunal Act 2014 ;

"single business" means—

            (a)         a business carried on by a single employer; or

            (b)         a business carried on by two or more employers as a joint venture or common enterprise; or

            (c)         a single project or undertaking; or

            (d)         activities carried on by—

                  (i)         the State; or

                  (ii)         a body, association, office or other entity established for a public purpose by or under a law of the State; or

                  (iii)         another body in which the State has a controlling interest;

"spouse"—a person is the spouse of another if they are legally married;

"State" includes a Territory of the Commonwealth;

"taxi" means a vehicle—

            (a)         licensed or exempted from the requirement to be licensed under Part 6 (Taxis) of the Passenger Transport Act 1994 ; and

            (b)         with seating accommodation for not more than 12 passengers; and

            (c)         used predominantly for the transport of passengers rather than the transport of goods or other freight;

"Termination of Employment Convention" means the Convention concerning Termination of Employment at the Initiative of the Employer set out in Schedule 7;

"workplace" means any place where an employee works and includes any place where such a person goes while at work but does not include any premises of an employer used for habitation by the employer and his or her household other than any part of such premises where an outworker works.

        (3)         A group of employees cannot be defined by reference to membership of a particular association.

        (4)         If a monetary sum is followed by the word (indexed) , the amount is to be adjusted on 1 January of each year by multiplying the stated amount by a proportion obtained by dividing State average full-time adult total earnings (seasonally adjusted) as at 30 June in the previous year by State average full-time adult total earnings (seasonally adjusted) as at 30 June in the year in which the stated amount was fixed by Parliament.



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