b'FOREWORD While the 2024/25 industrial relations (IR) landscape has seen fewer headline-grabbing legislative introductions compared to previous years, the rippleeffects of prior reforms continue to be felt. Several significant changes passedin recent years are now coming into force, requiring employers to adapt andimplement new compliance measures.On 3 June 2025, the Fair Work Commission On a more encouraging note, some of the fearedannounced a 3.5% increase to the national minimum disruption associated with high-profile reformssuchwage. In its accompanying commentary, the as the Closing the Loopholes Billhas not materialisedCommission attributed the restrained figure in part to to the extent predicted. Except for same job, sameAustralias ongoing challenges with labour pay labour hire provisions, uptake of the new claimproductivity. It also reinforced the importance of mechanisms available to employees has been relativelycontinued wage review processesparticularly within low, and impacts on day-to-day employer-employeefemale-dominated industriesas part of the national relationships appear to be minimal so far.push towards gender equity. More developments inthis space are anticipated. This report delves into these developments and more,offering analysis and practical commentary from theA defining theme of the IR environment this year Focus HR team on what these changes truly mean forappears to be an even stronger swing toward employers across Australia.employee rights. In several of the cases we explore inthis report, employee entitlements have seemingly As a final note: in our role as trusted people andprevailed over what many might consider common culture consultants, we are privileged to gain insightsenseincluding one memorable case involving a into the mindset of SME owners. A heartening trendpuppy, a rabbit, a pet fence in front of a home office we continue to see is a shift beyond mere compliance.door, and a successful compensation claim. More business leaders are choosing to do whats rightnot simply because legislation demands it, but becauseStatistically, the trend is clear. Unfair dismissal and they are committed to building great workplaces.general protections claims lodged with the Fair Work Rather than getting bogged down in red tape, they areCommission continue to rise. The settlement culture investing in relationships, fostering strong cultures,we examined last year is also intensifying, with the aligning values, and leading their people with purposeaverage settlement rate for unfair dismissal cases in and vision.the last two reporting quarters reaching 95%upfrom 89% in the previous two. This is particularly This, we believe, is where real impact lies. While thisconcerning given that claims proceed to conciliation report offers an in-depth analysis of the evolving IRwithout any prior merit assessment, and settlement landscape, we encourage all business leaders to keepoften translates to employers making ex gratia sight of their broader missionto lead with integritypayments even in low-substance matters. and create workplaces where people and businessthrive together.Naomi WilsonAlistair Green Founding Director, Director, BusinessPeople & LeadershipStrategy Disclaimer: Being general information pertaining to the eld of human resource management, the information in this presentationshould never override any legal or specic advice provided to you by state or federal governments or professional or legal advicegiven specic to your situation. Page | 3IR Update July 2025'