Category Archives: Not-For-Profit

Legal Duties & Responsibilities of an Employer

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Under NSW law, the Duties of an Employer (provided a contract of employment is established) includes

  • the provision of workers’ entitlements under various laws and awards (both state and federal), and
  • compliance with taxation/superannuation laws.

To comply with these duties (and avoid running foul of inspectors from the Department of Industrial Relations and civil litigation), the employer should (in law they must), inter alia:

  • Obtain their own Australian Business Number (ABN).
  • Obtain a policy of Workers compensation insurance. (It is recommended, but not compulsory, that employers obtain Public liability insurance against vicarious liability for the torts of employees.) Employers should display the policy of insurance, and maintain a record of any injuries or related incidents in the workplace.
  • Obtain a Tax File Number (TFN) number and a TFN declaration from the worker, and supply the declaration to the Australian Taxation Office.
  • Pay wages and other financial entitlements to the worker/emplyee as set out in the applicable award, Enterprise Bargaining Agreement (EBA), or Australian Workplace Agreement (AWA), or New Modern Award (NMA’s came into effect on 1/1/2010, replacing most State and Federal Awards, or National Employment Standards (NES now apply and provide minimum terms of employment for most employees in Australia.)
  • Comply with all other requirements (as to loadings, allowances, conditions, union entitlements, etc), imposed by any industrial instrument, or award, or EB, AWA, NMA that applies to the contract of employment.
  • Make provision for Superannuation for employees (except for employees who are aged over 70, or under 18 & working less than 30 hours/week or earning under $450/month). This first became compulsory in the result of a 1980’s national wage case, and has since been written into statute law. This is known as the Superannuation guarantee. Employers must contribute 9% of wages to a superannuation fund, but according to recent (2010) government announcements, this percentage will rise to 12%. From 2005 employees have a choice of fund.
  • Make Leave provision (in compliance with the Annual Holidays Act NSW and the Long Service Leave Act). That is, set money aside to pay a worker during the worker’s paid holidays. (Note that the contract of employment has terms inserted into it by statute that prescribe: employer pays for annual holidays, and public holidays.
  • Maintain Wage records. Most newsagencies sell a Zions Systems “Hours and Wages Record Book”, which is suitable for that purpose. Different size books are available for different sized workforces.
  • Provide wage slips to employees, to accompany regular payments of wages, as required by the NSW Industrial Relations Act 1996.
  • Make Pay As You Go (“PAYG”) tax deductions from wages. The ATO will supply blank PAYG Payment Summaries and also “PAYG Tables” to calculate the amount of the deduction. After the end of the financial year, the employer must supply a PAYG payment summary annual report to the ATO by 14 August.
  • Forward the accumulated PAYG tax deductions to the Tax Office, together with the quarterly (?) BAS.
  • Supply annual Payment Summaries to employees by 14 July, each year. Before PAYG Payment Summaries became the rule, employers supplied “group certificates” their employees. That terminology still persists and is commonly applied to the PAYG Payment Summaries. The employer also supplies a copy of the PAYG Payment Summary to the Tax Office.
  • Keep records such as PAYG payment summary annual reports, and PAYG Payment Summaries, for 5 years.
  • Give Reasonable notice prior to dismissal (see Dyer v Peverill (1979)2NTR1 below), or pay in lieu of notice.
  • Provide a Separation Certificate to the worker, upon dismissal of the worker.
  • Provide procedural fairness prior to any summary dismissal for “misconduct”.
  • In order to comply with various obligations, an employers’ letter of dismissal [or final payment] could say: “Enclosed herewith is (a) final payslip, and (b) a cheque in the sum of XX being for pay due from XX To XX less PAYG. Accrued LSL, AL up to XX, XX days $20. Enclosed herewith is Certificate of Service. Enclose herewith is Employment separation certificate (saying: This is to certify that fred bloggs was an employee of ?? from ?? to XX.)”.
  • Note: Regardless of what any award or written contract says, an employer is vulnerable to unfair dismissal claims (See Part 6 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996), and possibly claims under s.106 of the Industrial Relations Act 1996. (An employer is g generally vulnerable to intervention by the Industrial Relations Commission.)
  • (Note that the Howard government amended Federal laws affecting unfair dismissals, and I think these laws don’t apply with workplaces with fewer than 15 employees.)
  • Make provision for possible redundancy payments under s.119 of the Fair Work Act (Commonwealth).

Our Legal Fees & Services

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Family Law, Criminal Law, Immigration, Traffic Law

At GMH Legal we believe that client relationships matter more than time sheets which is why we offer a range of alternative fee arrangements to best suit your needs.

Our focus is on client service and establishing mutually rewarding relationships with our clients. We think that billing by the hour does not encourage the most efficient and effective delivery of legal services.

We strive to be innovative and eliminating the inherent inefficiencies of the billable hour means that we can focus on achieving the best possible result for our clients.

However, we do recognise that not all matters lend themselves to an alternative fee arrangement. That is why we offer a range of alternative fee arrangements, including straight time based billing if that is what works best for you.

We will work in collaboration with you to determine your specific legal requirements and then develop the most effective strategy and fee arrangement for your needs.

What we offer

GMH Legal can offer you the following fee arrangements, or a combination of these, as an alternative to time based billing. These options can be customised to suit your needs. No matter what fee arrangement you prefer, providing you with certainty by scoping and pricing our work upfront is our priority.

Fixed and value pricing

GMH Legal can charge you a fixed price for any matter. We will quote you a price and stick to it. If there is a change in the agreed scope of work, we will send you a variation detailing the new scope and the price for that change.

Value pricing is a fixed price that we agree up front with you that reflects your legal requirements and the service we provide. With value pricing you don’t pay for our time – you pay for the work we do and the value you receive.

This ensures you receive more value for your legal spend. Value pricing can also include fee incentives to achieve your goals and for results that exceed expectations. These incentives align our interests with yours, making your success our success.

Flexible retainers

With a retainer agreement, GMH Legal will charge you a fixed periodic fee for the provision of legal services. A retainer provides the budgetary control and certainty that hourly billing can’t.

We determine the periodic fee by calculating the average value of our services over the time taken to conduct the matter. A retainer means you know exactly what you will pay for the result you desire.

We will regularly review the terms of the retainer with you to ensure it remains fair to both parties.

Event-based pricing

GMH Legal can charge you a fixed price for each stage of a matter. We work with you to properly scope the matter, determine the stages involved and then agree a fixed fee with you for each stage.

Want to know more? Contact us to discuss how we can tailor a fee arrangement to best suit your needs.

George Hanna
Director Solicitor

Tel: (02) 9587 0458
Email: solicitors@gmhlegal.com

Australia’s New Charities Commission

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Australia’s first charity regulator, the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission (ACNC) has officially opened its doors for business announcing it will hit the road in the New Year in a national campaign to explain the ACNC’s proposed regulatory approach.

The Australian Charities and Not-For-Profits Commission Act was assented in parliament yesterday, and establishes the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission; charges the ACNC with registering not-for-profit entities (initially charities) and maintaining a register; provides for the powers of the ACNC Commissioner in relation to the regulation of registered entities; and sets out the obligations and responsibilities of registered entities.

From 1 July 2013, the government intends to introduce governance standards that will apply to all registered charities (except basic religious charities). Before these are finalised, the government will consult further with the sector, and the public more generally, before registering the standards and tabling them before each House of Parliament for its consideration prior to their commencement.

Until a statutory definition of charity has been finalised (with a briefing paper expected early in 2013 and the definition likely to take effect on July 1, 2013) a ‘charity’ will be understood to encompass organisations for: the relief of poverty, advancement of education, advancement of religion and other purposes beneficial to the community (including childcare, self-help and contemplative orders).

Registration with the ACNC is voluntary. If your charity has been automatically registered you have 6 months to opt-out. However, registration will be a necessary prerequisite for charities to access Commonwealth tax concessions and other concessions, exemptions and benefits.

There are a number of steps its recommends for charities wanting to be registered:

  • Check that your organisation has been automatically registered;
  • Check that the correct registration sub-type has been applied;
  • Confirm whether basic religious charity status should be applied;
  • Apply for a substituted accounting period (if you do not wish to report in accordance with the financial year);
  • Apply for registration, if your organisation has been self assessing (e.g. religious institutions);
  • Familiarise yourself with your new obligations such as the duty to notify the ACNC of changes and the new obligations on directors; and
  • Check your operational and financial records are in order as these may be checked at any time.

Should you have any queries regarding the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission or any other Charity queries, please contact our Principal Solicitor, Mr George Hanna on (02) 9587 0458 or by email on ghanna@gmhlegal.com .

A New Tax Guide for NFPs

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non profit organisation gmh legal

The ATO has released a new version of their guide Tax Basics to assist Non Profit Organisations operate through the maze of regulations.

The guide provides an overview of tax obligations and concessions for not-for-profit (NFP) organisations and helps to identify which taxes affect organisations, including income tax, fringe benefits tax (FBT), goods and services tax (GST) and pay as you go (PAYG).

Changes to the guide include:

  • 1. A new diagram showing the relationship between the types of NFP organisations
  • 2. Additional information on salary sacrifice and gifts made to deductible gift recipients (DGRs)
  • 3. Information on record keeping requirements for DGRs
  • 4. Additional information on reporting and paying tax, including lodging annual income tax returns
  • 5. Updates to tax policy.

Should you require any assistance for your non-profit organisation, please contact the Principal Solicitor for GMH Legal, Mr George Hanna on 02 9587 0458.