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Young Workers Centre YWC
Resources

The best way to prevent your rights being exploited at work is to join a union.
Together with your workmates, you can learn your workplace rights and identify when someone is trying to rip you off!

We've created a series of fact pages here that you can refer to when something doesn't seem right, or pass the links around when someone else needs help. But remember, this list isn't exhaustive - they're just a guide. For more information or information for your specific situation, contact the Young Workers Centre.

For information in languages other than English, click here.

Your Rights

Learn about The National Employment Standards (NES), what to do about wage theft and more.
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Health & Safety

Learn about your occupational health and safety rights at work. Including bullying, safety training and sick days.
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Occupation Specific

Information for Hospitality, Retail, Fast Food, Call Centre, and Gig Workers. Plus Apprentices and Interns.
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Research

Each year, the Young Workers Centre produces a number of publications based on research we conduct into the problems and issues facing young people at work. Our research is free to use, although we always love seeing it in action - remember to cite it correctly! April 2025 Submission to Inquiry: Payday Super and ending Super theft Submission to Inquiry: Addressing corporate misuse of the Fair Entitlements Guarantee January 2025 Strategic Review of the Australian Apprenticeship Incentive System* (*not written by the Young Workers Centre, but we were referenced in the review!) September 2024 Submission in response to the Restricting Non-Disclosure Agreements in WorkplaceSexual Harassment Cases Discussion Paper July 2024 Aged-based wages: Ending Junior rates in Australia November 2023 Submission to Inquiry: Employers and contractors who refuse to pay their subcontractors for completed works June 2023 Franchise survey report September 2022 McKell Institute's report, 'Working, learning: Better supporting Victorian apprentices on the job' December 2020 Victorian Government Youth Strategy Submission October 2020 Supplementary Submission to the On-Demand Inquiry's Recommendations Submission to the On-Demand Inquiry's Recommendations July 2020 Young Workers Centre inc. Annual Report 2019 - 2020 Submission to the Skills for Victoria's Growing Economy Review October 2019 Submission to the discussion paper on Improving Protections of Employees' Wages and Entitlements: Strengthening Penalties for Non-Compliance July 2019 Young Workers Centre inc. Annual Report 2018 - 19 November 2018 Franchise workers OHS Snapshot October 2018 Young Workers Centre inc. Annual Report 2017 - 18 June 2018 Submission to the inquiry into the framework surrounding the prevention, investigation and prosecution of industrial deaths in Australia May 2018 Briefing: Criminalising Wage Theft February 2018 Submission by the Young Workers Centre to the Senate Select Committee on the Future of Work and Workers January 2018 Young Workers Snapshot: On-Demand Food Delivery Riders (in partnership with the...
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Legal Resources

A list of other resources and organisations that can help you with legal matters.
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Other language support

We can arrange interpreters to bridge any language barriers. We have assisted workers whose primary language was: Mandarin, Arabic, Vietnamese, Spanish, Hindi, Dari, French, Dutch, Dinka, Cantonese, Cambodian, Burmese, Bosnian, Bengali, Belgian, Bangla, Albanian, Afrikaans, Urdu, Ukrainian, Turkish, Tigrinya, Telugu, Tamil, Swedish, Somali, Slovak, Sinhalese, Serbian, Punjabi, Portugese, Polish, Persian, Nuer, German, Filipino, Nepali, Marathi, Maltese, Malayam, Macedonian, Korean, Japanese, Italian, Indonesian, Hazaraghi, Gujurati and Greek.
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Am I a Casual?

Knowing if you’re a casual can be tricky. The legal test is whether there is a “firm advance commitment” of work, and what that means will depend on each person’s circumstances. If you’re not a casual, you could be full-time or part-time. Sometimes casuals get treated really badly at work – like cutting your shifts late, not paying on time, not paid when you’re sick - because your boss controls when and therefore how much you work and get paid. Some bosses choose to keep people on as a casual so they can take advantage of them.  Are you pressured or forced into working whatever shifts you’re given? Read on! You're probably casual if... • You get paid a casual loading (e.g. 25%) on top of your hourly rate.   Your payslip should show this. If it doesn’t ask your employer. • You give your availability • You decide what shifts you work or don’t work • Your boss sometimes gives you shifts, but sometimes doesn’t • You work different hours each week • You’re only there for a short time • There’s a ‘core’ number of workers and you fill in around them • You don’t get paid if you call in sick What do I get as a casual vs full or part-time? Casual: • Higher hourly rate - because of the 25% casual loading • Flexibility around your availability • Ability to work multiple jobs (if that’s your thing!) Full or Part-time: • Job security • Regular hours, regular pay • At least a week’s notice that they don’t want you to work there anymore • Holiday pay • Sick pay • Redundancy pay if your employer collapses Can I change from being casual? Maybe! If you’re not sure, contact your union or the Young Workers Centre...
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