The Fair Work Commission has announced plans to phase out junior pay rates for young adults within certain highly-populated industries. The changes will see entry-level employees aged 18-20 in the retail, fast food, and pharmacy industries receiving adult pay rates without the existing junior discounts. Currently, the three awards pay 90 per cent of the adult rate for 20-year-olds, 80 per cent for 19-year-olds, and 70 per cent for 18-year-olds, with even higher discounts for employees under 18. Source: Fair Work Ombudsman, General Retail Industry Award 2020, Pharmacy Industry Award 2020, Fast Food Industry 2020 The decision follows an…
Author: Max McIver
With the 2026 Winter Paralympics having finished on Sunday, athletes are already looking towards the next event on the Olympic calendar – the 2028 Summer Games. Illawarra tennis coach Jayden Simpson has recently entered the wheelchair tennis arena and says preparations for the international competition have already kicked off. National wheelchair tennis champion Anderson Parker, who competed in the previous 2024 Paralympic games, began training with Mr. Simpson late last year in preparation for 2028. Max McIver · Summer Paralympics prep begins with Illawarra tennis coach In this time, Parker has been working alongside Simpson competing in international tournaments, most…
Max McIver Under the morning shadow of Mt. Kiera, at the escarpment’s foot, Wollongong’s Botanic Gardens segues the region’s warm rainforests to its bustling beachfront city. But the community hotspot meshes more than just plants and concrete. It’s easy to imagine such a landscape being reduced to cliché – described with mention of a paintbrush and endless colour indexes for various greens, some tinted yellow and some more blue. But with an exhaustive breadth of climates, flora, art, and community, it cannot be encapsulated so simply. Each habitat speaks to a history of consideration and sculpture. All heights of plants…
Helensburgh miners secured significant pay increases and improved job security on Thursday following a prolonged clash with a local employer. The Mining and Energy Union (MEU) attained a three-year enterprise agreement with Peabody Energy resolving three weeks of strikes at The Metropolitan Colliery. The agreement guarantees workers a five-percent annual pay increase for three years, and requires the mine to be fully manned with direct employees before contractors are involved in primary operations. MEU Spokesperson Ned Bukarica said the union prioritised the security of direct employment for existing and future employees. “There was a big concern that Peabody was trying…