There will be changes to warranties provided by suppliers or manufacturers to consumers in relation to goods or services. Warranties entitle consumers to repair, replacement, refund or other forms of compensation for goods or services. From 1 January 2012, a warranty should be in writing and:
(a) Be in clear, simple and plain language;
(b) Include the full contact details of the person or business supplying the warranty;
(c) Specify the warranty period and procedure to submit a warranty claim;
(d) Include a statement that rights under warranties are in conjugation with consumer guarantees, which cannot be excluded.

The new personal property securities regime in the Personal Property Securities Act 2009 will commence in October 2011. It combines Commonwealth, state and territory laws into one national Register. The new regime affects leasing, financing, supply of goods with retention of title, company charges, purchase and sale of personal property, bankruptcy and corporate insolvency.

Any business that supplies goods by way of sale or lease or even by bailment has a risk of suffering significant losses in the future if they are unfamiliar with the changes and take the necessary steps to guard their rights. By contrast, businesses that are aware and utilise the Register will take advantage of the benefits by enforcing rights over personal property.

The Work Health and Safety Act 2011 (Cth) (the “WHS Act”) commenced on 1 January 2012. The WHS Act replaces the Occupational Health and Safety Act 1991.

Under the WHS Act, a person conducting a business or undertaking must ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, that the health and safety of other persons is not at risk from work performed as part of the business or undertaking.

A business or undertaking is required to advise Comcare immediately upon the occurrence of a notifiable incident.

All businesses should be familiar with the requirements of the WHS Act.

Section 352 of the Fair Work Act 2009 protects employees who are on sick leave due to illness or injuries prescribed by the Fair Work Regulations from being dismissed.

The case of Kavassilas v Migration Training Australia Pty Ltd [2012] FMCA 22 shows that an employer who dismisses an employee on sick leave is at risk of paying compensation and wages to that employee. Employers should seek legal advice prior to dismissing an employee and due to the short time frame in which employees have to lodge an unfair dismissal claim employees should seek legal advice immediately upon being dismissed.

In the case of Keating v Fry [2012] WASC 15, both the directors and company were convicted and fined under the provisions of the Occupational Safety & Health Act due to the death of an employee using an unsafe method of operating a crane. The case serves as a reminder to company directors that they are ultimately responsible for occupational health and safety in the workplace.

The Federal Court of Australia held that using Google AdWords of a competitor's business or reputation is a breach by the advertiser of the Competition and Consumer Act 2010 (Cth) formerly known as the Trade Practices Act 1974 (Cth). To minimise the risk of liability, businesses should only use AdWords which are specific or related to their business or activities and avoid words which will associate them with their competitor.

The minimum wage panel of Fair Work Australia made the following decisions regarding minimum wages, which are effective on or after 1 July 2012:

(a) To increase the national minimum wage by $17.10 per week. This means an increase from $15.51 per hour ($589.30 per week) to $15.96 per hour ($606.40 per week); and
(b) To increase by 2.9% the hourly modern award minimum rates of pay across the board.

An employee who is covered by an Award or enterprise agreement and earns above the high-income threshold can make an unfair dismissal claim. By contrast, any employee who is not covered by a modern Award or enterprise agreement and earns above the high-income threshold, is not eligible to make an unfair dismissal claim under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth).

From 1 July 2012, the high-income threshold for employees who are entitled to make an unfair dismissal claim increased from $118,100 to $123,300. This means that the maximum compensation for an unfair dismissal has increased to $61,650.

In ACCC v Allergy Pathway Pty Ltd (No 2) [2011] FCA 74, Allergy Pathway Pty Ltd and its director, were fined $7,500 each for breach of undertakings made to the court in 2009 after the ACCC succeed in an action against them for false, misleading and deceptive conduct. The issue in recent proceedings was whether Allergy Pathway should be responsible for statements posted by third parties which contravened the undertakings.

Justice Finkelstein held that even though the representations were written and posted by clients on Allergy Pathway’s Facebook and Twitter pages, Allergy Pathway was responsible for the publications as it failed to remove them.

Businesses should monitor their social media pages regularly to ensure that any incorrect, misleading or offensive statements by third parties are removed.

NEWS & PUBLICATIONS

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