Recruiting new staff

After much of Australia has recently emerged from the effects of Covid-19, businesses are looking for new staff as they open their businesses back up; but, also in circumstances that employees may be looking for other opportunities. It is important that small-business owners get the recruitment of staff right.

1. Review your current staff structure

The first step in your recruitment process is reviewing your current staff structure. Once you have assessed the role of the new employee, create a position description and write it down. This will give you a clear indication of the type of candidate you are looking for.

If your business is replacing an employee, you must ensure that you review the previous job description and determine whether it needs to be updated.

2. Advertising for new staff

It is essential that when the business advertises for new staff it complies with current legislation. This includes the following issues:

· minimum pay conditions

· anti-discrimination; and

· equal opportunity requirements.

Discrimination against applicants in the recruitment process is unlawful. This can include taking into account race, religion, sex, age, disability and political opinion when making decisions about whether to hire staff.

3. Interviewing for new staff

Once the employer has advertised for positions, they can then invite shortlisted candidates to be interviewed.

It is a good idea to prepare questions ahead of the interview and to take notes at the interview. The employer should take into consideration that not all candidates will interview well.

Once a candidate is selected after the interview, check the references that have been provided. It is important to send the successful candidate a written letter of employment.

Although the offer of employment can be verbal, a written offer and employment contract is definitely preferred. A written contract ensures there is no ambiguity about the terms and conditions of employment, which protects your business.

Do not forget to contact unsuccessful candidates and let them know the outcome soon after you have made your decision not to offer them the position.

4. Employment contract

The employment contract is a very important document. It is really important that the contract complies with legal obligations. The Australian Government has prepared a website that allows employers to prepare a compliant contract Employment Contract Tool. This can be used to streamline the process and ensure that the contract complies with workplace laws.

This tool does not cover all types of workers. However, the web page has links with information on:

· apprentices and trainees

· piece workers

· seasonal workers

· independent contractors (not employees!)

· employees under enterprise agreements

It is important to note that there have been recent cases where employers have been founds to have not properly categorised their workers against minimum wage classifications. The result was that employers have been ordered to pay the difference to employees to bridge the gap of what they should have been paid. This can be a significant amount of money, not to mention associated penalties, reputational damage and the time and cost of litigation.

5. Employee eligibility

The final steps are to check that the employee is eligible to work in Australia and whether they need any specific licenses or qualifications to perform their role. Consider providing training if they do not have the prerequisite qualifications.

With thanks to Nick Noonan, employment law specialist, of Henry William Lawyers for his assistance in preparing this article.