“The family and domestic violence leave amendments to the Fair Work Act, that passed through Parliament today, are a sensible legislative change to address an important community problem,” Australian Industry Group Chief Executive, Innes Willox, said today.
“The amendments extend the five-day unpaid domestic violence leave entitlement which the Fair Work Commission (FWC) recently incorporated into awards, to all employees.
“No doubt the unions will criticise the legislation for not reflecting the 10-day paid leave entitlement that they pursued in the FWC case, but this entitlement was rejected by the independent Commission. Different employers have different capacities to provide leave.
“Domestic violence is a community problem and the whole community has a role to play in addressing it. Employers understand this and typically take a supportive and compassionate approach when their employees are impacted by domestic violence,” Mr Willox said.
