Employment + Work Futures

apprentice

a person who has agreed to work for a skilled person for a particular period of time and often for lower wages in order to gain knowledge and skills about a particular job — for example, an apprentice plumber

apprenticeship

training and education in a trade

arbitration

a method of resolving disputes whereby an impartial third party decides on a settlement arrangement that is then binding on the parties to the dispute

award

a document that outlines an employee’s minimum pay and conditions

cadetship/traineeship

training in a full-time job, with time allocated to attend university or TAFE

casual

employed on an ‘as needed’ basis

chief executive officer (CEO)

the most senior person in charge of managing an organisation

collective wants

goods and services that are for the use of the whole community

common law (employment) contract

when an employer and an individual employee negotiate a contract covering pay and conditions

conciliation

similar to mediation except the conciliator can suggest possible solutions

discrimination

treating a person less favourably because of factors such as gender, ethnicity, religion or disability

economy

all activities undertaken for the purpose of production, distribution and consumption of goods and services in a region or country

employee

person who works for a wage or salary

employer

person who hires employees

employment contract

a legally binding formal agreement between an employee and an employer

enterprise agreement

agreement about pay and conditions made at a workplace/enterprise level

entitlements

non-wage benefits such as long service leave or sick leave

full-time 

continuing, ongoing employment working 38 hours or more per week

gender segregation

the physical, legal, and cultural separation of people according to their biological sex

Generation Alpha

a person typically born after 2010

Generation X

a person typically born between the early to mid-1960s to the early 1980s

Generation Y

a person typically born between the early to mid-1980s to the mid-1990s

Generation Z

a person typically born between the mid-1990s to the mid- to late 2000s

goods and services tax (GST)

a value-added tax levied on most goods and services sold for domestic consumption; GST is paid by consumers, but is remitted to the government by the businesses selling the goods and services; GST provides revenue for the government

grievance procedures

a number of predetermined steps that are followed to resolve a dispute

industrial action

a temporary show of dissatisfaction by employees; for example, a strike

industry

an area of economic activity, employment, trade, manufacturing, production or gathering of resources

labour force

people aged 15 and over who are either employed or unemployed

loading

extra pay to compensate casual employees for lack of access to entitlements

mediation

when a third party helps those involved in a dispute to negotiate a solution acceptable to both sides

multinational company

a corporate organisation that owns or controls the production of goods or services in at least one country other than its home country

negotiation

a corporate organisation that owns or controls the production of goods or services in at least one country other than its home country

participation rate

the proportion of people aged 15 or over employed or actively looking for work

part-time

ongoing employment working fewer than 38 hours per week

primary industry

industry involved in the growing or extracting of natural resources

pro rata

proportion of normal full-time benefits related to the hours worked

quaternary industry

industry involved in the transfer and processing of information and knowledge

quinary industry

industry involved in providing domestic services

redundancy

the termination of an employee’s employment due the employer deciding they no longer need the employee’s job to be done by anyone, or the employer becomes bankrupt

seasonal employment

does not continue year-round but usually recurs

secondary industry

industry involved in turning raw materials into finished or semi-finished products

sharing economy

also known as collaborative consumption, involves people sharing their possessions for payment

standard of living

the degree of wealth and material comfort available to a person for their life and lifestyle

superannuation

money set aside during your working life for retirement; commonly called ‘super’

taxes

the part of our income taken by the government to pay for collective goods and services

tertiary industry

industry involved in providing a service to others

traineeship 

the combination of employment and training in order to gain a qualification

unemployment

when people are trying to find work but have so far been unsuccessful

unfair dismissal

termination of employment that is considered to be harsh, unjust or unreasonable

wellbeing

a state of being comfortable, happy and healthy

work–life balance

achieving the right amount of time devoted to work and for personal life