Legal help for community organisations

Employees

Please change your location to view this page.

This page contains content that does not match your current location

Not-for-profit community organisations have the same legal obligations as any employer to their workers - but that doesn't mean that employment law is easy to understand. There is a lot of information available on employment law, but it can be hard to know what is useful and where to start - especially when you have a question you need addressed urgently.

Our information on employment law is designed to assist organisations to understand the legal framework and identify issues when they arise. The law surrounding employment is complex and it changes sometimes, so the information in these pages shouldn't replace advice from a lawyer who specializes in employment law. If your organisation suspects that it has an employment issue, it is best to seek specialist advice as soon as possible.

Employee, contractor or volunteer?

At times, it can be difficult to assess if someone at your organisation would be considered an 'employee'. The Not-for-profit Law Guide: Employees, contractor or volunteer can help you to undertake an assessment of whether employment laws apply (but as this can be complex, it can be a good idea to get some legal advice). The fact sheet below has more information about:

definitions of employees, independent contractors and volunteers, and
legal obligations owed by community organisations.

PDF

Employee, contractor or volunteer?

DOWNLOAD | 889KB

We often run training programs and webinars on distinguishing between employees, contractors and volunteers. Check our Training page for further information.

employees management employment law conflict internal conflict disputes discrimination criminal conduct recruitment fair work OH&S OHS occupational health and safety insurance grievance background checks working with children check