An after hours meeting is paid work time

As an employer, you know how important it is to keep everyone in the loop, right? You’ve read articles on employee engagement and can see the link between increased productivity when people understand how their work contributes to the big picture.

Whether it is news on an exciting new project or you simply want to keep the team informed about the direction of the business, it can be challenging to get everyone together at the same time…particularly if you have full-time employees, maybe a few working remotely, some as part-timers and others employed as casuals.

A common solution? An after-hours meeting to deliver the news: good food, a short presentation from you, maybe some drinks, a bit of team bonding: everyone in and out in a couple of hours.

And it doesn’t disrupt normal hours of productivity. It couldn’t be a simpler or more economical option to hold the meeting during work hours.

While you should be congratulated for your employee engagement strategy, you should also be aware that if attending a meeting is considered compulsory, you are obligated to pay employees for their attendance.

Are compulsory staff meetings outside of normal work hours paid or unpaid?

Full-Time Employees: For full-time employees, an after-hours meeting may be considered overtime (depending on starting and finishing times).

It’s relevant to check the “Hours of Work” section in any Modern Award that applies to your employees to understand what is defined as the ordinary spread of hours and what might constitute overtime.

Casual Employees: When it comes to casual employees, same thing: check any Awards T&C’s that apply to being called in.

The Clerks – Private Sector Award 2010 states the following:

12.4 Casual employees are entitled to a minimum payment of three hours’ work at the appropriate rate.

Conclusion

Bottom line? All compulsory meetings are paid work time. Employees have to be paid the right pay for time spent in team meetings, if their employer requires them to be there.

Want to know more? Check out Unpaid Work information from Fair Work here.

Need advice for your HR?

There’s a lot you have to know to be successful in business…like that, it’s not possible to know everything about every aspect of it.

Smart business owners are aware that sometimes you need help outside your own area of expertise, particularly about employment, HR and Fair Work obligations.

Greg Bowmer from Bare Bones Consulting is an experienced HR provider on the Gold Coast and in Brisbane.

Why not Greg a call on 0401 279 065 or send us an online enquiry.

He’ll provide value-for-money information tailored to your business. And it starts with a cup of coffee…no after-hours payment required.