2.9 awards and agreements

Question 1

awards

Answer 1

provide pay rates and conditions of employment for a particular industry or occupation

Question 2

advantages of awards

Answer 2

• less costly for the business as ten national employment standards act as a safety net (whilst more is required for agreements)
• less time consuming in determining appropriate terms and conditions
• provides a stable and secure safety net for employees
• has wage equality

Question 3

disadvantages of awards

Answer 3

• less flexibility –> cannot be customised to the needs of a workplace
• modern awards can be complex
• business may need to implement numerous different awards in the same workplace

Question 4

agreement

Answer 4

agreements are contracts made at a business/enterprise level between employers and employees about terms and conditions of employment for one specific business

Question 5

advantages of agreements

Answer 5

• very flexible –> can be tailored to specific workplace needs
• greater effort and contribution to productivity improvements by employees can be rewarded
• can be utilised to attract highly talented or skilled employees

Question 6

disadvantages of agreements

Answer 6

• time consuming to negotiate –> eg. employees must be consulted during enterprise bargaining and a proposed agreement must go through an approval process before it will be approved by the fair work commission
• varying pay or conditions of work may result in industrial action
• conditions that are better than relevant awards may be expensive for a business
• varying pay or conditions of work may result in industrial action