A Fair Work ruling allowing a 63-year-old university staffer to work from home because her commute is tiring is unlikely to open a “floodgate” of WFH appeals, a recruitment expert says.
Randstad Australia general manager Madeleine Hill says while Melburnians often joke it’s their “birthright” to work from home, research from the HR giant shows 43 per cent of job seekers will simply reject a role that mandates five days in the office.
“Working from home is very much a pillar of modern society … if you’re demanding people need to be in the office (full time), you’re missing out on a big chunk of talent,” Ms Hill told NewsWire.
Earlier this month, the Fair Work Commission ordered Victoria University to allow a 63-year-old student adviser to work from home once because her commute was too tiring.
The industrial umpire ordered the university to run a six-month trial for the worker despite much of her role being to help students face-to-face when they walk in.
The Fair Work Act allows parents of school-aged children, carers, people with a disability and over-55s to appeal an employer’s flexible work arrangements.
The Randstad Australia boss said the decision was unlikely to have wider implications.
“I don’t think we’re going to see the floodgates open … I don’t think there’ll be a big shift. I think there will be a logical evolution,” Ms Hill said.
“Because it is part of the modern society that we work from home, potentially I think we’ll see a few more challenges coming through the Fair Work Commission. But I don’t think it’s going to be huge because people typically have a hybrid (work) environment anyway.”
The full-time Victoria University student adviser, Michele Duffy, had been taking one day of long service leave off every week for a year after the university rejected her request to work from home two days per week.
Commissioner Oanh Thi Tran ruled the university had reasonable grounds to reject the two-day application but cited Ms Duffy’s evidence of fatigue from commuting – coupled with being over 55 – as grounds to order the six month trial.
The Victorian Labor government is looking to introduce laws that would guarantee two days of working from home per week, though the legislation has been bounced on a deferral from the upper house and is now unlikely to pass into law before the November 28 state election.
Herself based in Melbourne, Ms Hill said Melburnians’ working culture was likely altered the most by Covid-19 lockdowns.
“I think as a scar of the pandemic, I always joke that Melburnians think it’s their birthright now to work from home, which clearly, it is not.
“But we are possibly a little more demanding about it.”
If the Victorian bill becomes law, the changes would likely send another signal to companies, rather than set a direct precedent for other states, Ms Hill said.
“I’m not a legal expert, but I would say companies who are interested in longevity, retaining their employees, productivity, employee engagement and satisfaction; all of those things are higher when you have hybrid working.
“Our research shows that year after year after year.”