From bartending, pokies service, health administration, to grain handling and machine operating, sheep-rouseabouting, and counting votes for the Australian Electoral Commission (to name a few) my working life has mostly been casual. At university I was the one of the few in my classes that had a part-time job!
For many of us, casual employment is not a choice, it's the only option. I've watched my friends in other workplaces be underpaid as casuals, or underemployed, and struggle to make ends meet. In a recent role, I converted from casual to part-time hours, to full-time over the course of three years. Sure, casual employment comes with increased flexibility...but for a full-time university student and then young worker living out of home, having a part-time job is a lifeline.
Am I really able to afford to knock back that shift as a casual? Am I really being adequately compensated for the sick and annual leave I am missing out on? ✨
Did you know that Australia has one of the most casualised workforces in the world?
Recently I attended Melbourne Law Week's Solidarity Night at Trades Hall hosted by the Young Workers Centre How to get paid to go on holiday. The panel discussion was an in-depth conversation on how to convert from casual to permanent under Victorian Law.
The panellists all offered so much insight into the trials and tribulations of being a casual, how to convert with a supplied template, and how having a conversation with our employer on our rights at work is something we can all do.
Speakers included:
Oanh Thi Tran | Commissioner of the Fair Work Commission
Oanh was appointed as a Commissioner of the Fair Work Commission – Australia’s national workplace relations tribunal – in July 2023. She is Deputy Practice Lead for Employee-Like Workers, assisting Vice President Ingrid Asbury as the National Practice Lead for minimum standards for regulated workers. Prior to FWC, Oanh was principal solicitor at the Young Workers Centre. She has also been a Union legal and Industrial Officer with the Textile, Clothing and Footwear Union of Australia and CFMMEU-Manufacturing Division and worked in law firms in the UK and Queensland. Oanh began her legal career as a judge’s associate and has also worked in retail, been a Christmas elf and shop fitter.
Grace Dowling | Organiser at United Workers Union
Grace is an organiser at the United Workers Union and is passionate about workers rights and trade union organising. She spent 10 years in the hospitality industry and has worked in admin, on the phones, in sales and customer service. Grace and her colleagues worked together at a hospitality venue in Melbourne to convert from casual to permanent, and were successful.
Joshua McDiarmid | Senior Animal Attendant
Joshua is 29yrs old and has been working as a casual all his life. From seasonal cherry picking to the dog daycare industry he has been working in since 2021, casual work has been a mixed bag of positives and negatives. He is currently working at a dog daycare as a casual senior animal attendant and is studying a Certificate IV in Animal Behaviour and Dog Training.
Kelly Thomas | Lawyer at Young Workers Centre
Kelly uses her legal skills to work in service of working people and their unions. Prior to coming to YWC, Kelly worked for a national union and a national plaintiff law firm. She is proud of her advocacy for workers and highlights winning a huge compensation payment for a young victim of sexual assault. Working on the $100million class action for workers with an intellectual disability who were underpaid will always be an honour for her. Outside of work, Kelly enjoys walking her dog, Harvey, having a laugh and is otherwise busy raising a future feminist.
✨So really what are the benefits of converting from casual to part-time / full-time / permanent?
- sick pay ✅
- holiday pay ✅
- carers leave ✅
- domestic violence leave✅
- personal leave ✅
- consistent work / working hours ✅
- opportunity for increased personal stability if your role is made redundant ✅
- opportunity to upskill ✅
These are examples of basic working rights that many young people don't have access to, and we should!
When we convert from casual to part or full time, we give ourselves the opportunity to upskill, gain a regular and stable income, and make sure we are properly compensated for the work that we do.
✨So how do I convert from casual to permanent?
While it is not always straightforward to escape unwanted casual employment, recent changes make it a LOT easier than it once was...
First up, you can just ask your boss if you can switch to permanent work at any time.
But if you have worked for 6 months at a large employer or 12 months at a small employer and you want to convert to full-time or part-time, they have to take your request seriously.
And if
- you work the same shifts every week,
- have worked the same shifts every week for a long time, OR
- feel you can no longer say no to shifts,
you might be able to demonstrate that you’re not really a casual, whatever it says on your payslip.
The Young Workers Centre has a template available to assist all workers in converting from casual to permanent.
You never know, it’s always worth asking.