commerce notes
Commerce Assessment Notes 2
Employment and Work Futures:
• Work and wellbeing
• Workplace participants
• The nature of work and changing work patterns
• Rights and responsibilities in the workplace
• Types of employment and income
• Current issues in employment
Slides to Revise!!!! (In order from how we learnt)
• Consumer and Financial Decisions (1)
• Consumer Protection (2)
• Financial Management (3)
• Employment and Work Futures (4)
• Current Employment Issues (5)
Work and Wellbeing
To have a disposable income - A disposable income is funds that are available to be spent after all taxes, bills and compulsory costs of living are paid for. This surplus income can then be spent in any manner desired, that is, disposed of for fun, holidays and hobbies. Paying for needs is ideal, but being able to pay for wants is a luxury that most aspire to.
• Wellbeing is a complex combination of a person's physical, mental, emotional and social health factors. Wellbeing is strongly linked to happiness and life satisfaction.
Ways that work can improve wellbeing
• Social connections
• Increase living standards
• Enhance emotional and mental security
• Sense of achieving goals and having purpose
• Growth and development
Ways that work can harm wellbeing
• Stress and pressure
• Unsafe work environments
• Lack of support
• Long hours
Work-life balance means having enough time and energy for both your job and your personal life. Why it's important:
• Reduces stress
• Improves health and happiness
• Boosts productivity
• Strengthens relationships
Ways to improve it:
1. Set clear work hours – Don’t work overtime unless necessary.
2. Take breaks – Short breaks during the day help recharge.
3. Unplug after work – Avoid checking emails or calls outside work hours.
Workplace participants
Contractor - a person or company hired to perform work or provide services under a contract for a specific period or project
Trade union - an organization formed by workers to protect and promote their rights, wages, working conditions and benefits
Employer association - an organisation that supports businesses by providing advice, assisting with workplace relations and policy development
The nature of work and changing work patterns
Changing industries -
• An industry refers to a group of businesses involved in similar or related work.
• Primary industry is one that produces raw materials from what nature has provided
• Secondary industry includes all workers involved in turning raw materials into finished or semi-finished products.
• Tertiary industry involves providing a service others
• Quaternary industry is made up of service industries that deal with processing information and knowledge
• Quinary industry is made up of domestic services, many of which were once carried out by people within their own homes
• An occupation relates to the work or activities that a person performs in order to earn a living.
Changing workplace patterns
• Increased participation of women (rates went up by 40%)
• The participation rate measures an economy’s active labour force and is the sum of all employed workers divided by the working age population
• Change in average work hours can be part attributed to the significant increase in part time employment
• Part time roles now exist in almost all industries, and are particularly prevalent in the retail and hospitality sectors
• Casualisation: shift in employment from full time to casual, part time roles, often leading to lower pay, fewer benefits and job insecurity
Gender Pay Gap
The gender pay gap is influenced by a number of factors, including:
• discrimination and bias in hiring and pay decisions
• women and men working in different industries and different jobs, with female-dominated industries and jobs attracting lower wages
• women’s disproportionate share of unpaid caring and domestic work
• lack of workplace flexibility to accommodate caring and other responsibilities, especially in senior roles
• women’s greater time out of the workforce impacting career progression and opportunities.
Rights and responsibilities in the workforce
• When you start a job, you and your employer make an employment contract – a formal agreement about the job.
• This contract can be written or verbal, but a written one is safer for both parties.
TYPES OF EMPLOYMENT CONTRACTS:
• Award - Modern awards are legal documents that set minimum pay and working conditions for different jobs and industries. They cover things like wages, work hours, leave, superannuation, and redundancy. These rules ensure fair treatment for employees across Australia.
• Enterprise agreement - An enterprise agreement is a workplace-level deal between an employer and employees (or a union) about pay and conditions. It can replace or build on a modern award and usually offers better terms. To be approved, it must pass the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT) — meaning employees must be better off than under the relevant award.
• Common law contract - Common law employment contracts apply to employees not covered by a modern award or enterprise agreement. They're usually used for professional or managerial roles. These contracts are individually negotiated, legally binding, and private — not open to public review.
Three Key Parts of a Contract:
1. Offer – The employer offers you the job, explaining the job duties and conditions.
2. Acceptance – You accept the job and agree to the terms.
3. Consideration –
• The employer agrees to pay you (wages and benefits).
• You agree to work and provide your labour.
Important Points:
• Contracts are legally binding – both the employee and employer must follow the agreed terms.
• A good working relationship depends on both sides meeting their responsibilities.
• If problems arise (e.g. one side isn’t keeping their promise), a third party might be needed to help resolve the issue.
Rights Responsibilities
• Fair pay
• Feel safe (mental, physical)
• Freedom from discrimination (privacy)
• Entitlements - sick pay, maternity and paternity leave, grace days
• Mentally safe • Turn up regularly/be on time
• Complaint
• Follow rules
• Maintain health and safety
• Identifying risks/report concerns
• Appropriate dress/attire
• Do not release private info
Superannuation is money your employer puts into a special fund while you work, to help you have money to live on when you retire. It’s like a long-term savings plan for your future. In Australia, employers are required to contribute a percentage of your regular pay into your super fund—this is called the super guarantee. As of now, the super rate is 12%.
Tax is money that people and businesses pay to the government—federal, state, or local. The government uses this money to provide things everyone needs, like parks, schools, and hospitals. The federal government also uses tax money to help people who need it by giving out payments like unemployment benefits or pensions to reduce inequality.
In Australia, there are three levels of government—federal, state, and local—and each provides different services:
• Federal government: Handles big things for the whole country, like defense (army), immigration, and social welfare (like pensions and unemployment benefits).
• State government: Looks after services like schools, hospitals, and public transport.
• Local government: Takes care of local needs like parks, rubbish collection, local roads, and libraries.
Types of Tax
Income tax (PAYG) is a tax that workers pay on their wages or salary. It’s a progressive tax, which means the more you earn, the higher the percentage of tax you pay.
The federal government also collects other taxes, including:
• Company tax: Money businesses pay on the profits they make.
• Excise duty: a special tax on things like cigarettes, alcohol, and petrol
• Customs duty: a tax on some imported goods
• Capital gains tax: a tax on the profit made when selling things like property or shares.
Resolving disputes
Here’s a simple explanation of the main ways to resolve a dispute, usually done from least to most serious:
• Grievance procedures: Following a set process to report and fix problems at work.
• Negotiation: Talking directly to agree on a solution.
• Mediation: Bringing in a neutral person to help both sides talk and agree.
• Conciliation and Arbitration: Using a third person to help settle the dispute or make a decision if the sides can’t agree.
Unfair Dismissal
If an employee isn’t doing their job properly or behaves badly, they can be dismissed (fired). There are three main types:
1. Summary dismissal – for serious misconduct like theft or violence.
2. Dismissal by notice – for poor performance.
3. Redundancy – when the job is no longer needed.
Unfair dismissal is when someone is fired in a harsh or unfair way. Under the Fair Work Act 2009, employees can apply to the Fair Work Commission within 21 days for help. They must have worked 6 months in a large business or 12 months in a small one to apply.s





Types of Employment and income
• The labour force is made up of people aged 15 and over who are either employed (including self-employed people) AND unemployed.
Employed Unemployed
• be aged 15 years or over
• have worked for at least one hour in the week, or have a job even though you were not at work in the week
• have received pay, income, commission, or payment of some kind for your work. • not employed for one hour or more
• is actively seeking work
• is currently available for work.
Sources of Income -
Wages: money a person earns for the work they do, usually paid weekly or daily. Pay based on hours or days worked
Salary: fixed amount of money a person earns, does not change based on the number of hours worked
Profit: the money a person or business earns after paying all the cost and expenses.
Profit = selling price - cost price
Commission: extra money someone earns based on the sales they make. Usually percentage of the sale amount
Dividends: money the company pays to shareholders (owners) from its profits. Profit shared with shareholders
Types of Employment Contracts:
There are three main types (not detailed in your notes, but here’s a common breakdown for study help):
1. Full-time – Regular hours, job security, full benefits.
2. Part-time – Fewer hours than full-time, but still with some benefits.
3. Casual – Flexible hours, usually no guaranteed hours, fewer benefits.
Current Employment issues
Unemployment
To be counted as an unemployed person, the person must be:
• Without work
• Available to begin work
• Actively seeking employment
• Over 15 years old (be apart of the labour force)
Types of Unemployment:
1. Frictional – Unemployment that occurs when people are temporarily between jobs or entering the workforce for the first time. It includes people voluntarily changing jobs and searching for new ones.
2. Cyclical – Unemployment caused by a downturn in the economy. A fall in consumer spending reduces the demand for goods and services, which leads to a reduced demand for workers.
3. Hard-core – Unemployment experienced by individuals who have difficulty finding or keeping a job due to personal characteristics such as mental health issues, disabilities, or substance abuse.
4. Seasonal – Unemployment that occurs because some jobs are only needed at certain times of the year, such as fruit picking or ski instructing.
5. Structural – Unemployment that results from changes in the economy that make certain skills obsolete, often due to technological advancements or shifts in consumer demand.
Calculating the unemployment rate
FORMULA: number unemployed
—------------------------- x 100
Total labour force*
*total labour force= employed+unemployed
Gig Economy:
A labour market that relies heavily on temporary and part-time positions filled by independent contractors and freelancers rather than full-time permanent employees.
Gig economy advantages and disadvantages
The gig economy has both good and bad sides for workers and businesses. One good thing is that it gives workers more freedom and control over their time. For example, people who work as Uber drivers or food delivery riders can choose when they want to work. This is helpful for those who need to take care of family or want to work part-time. It also gives people a chance to earn money when full-time jobs are hard to find. For businesses, the gig economy helps save money and stay flexible. Companies don’t have to pay for things like health care, sick days, or pensions when they hire gig workers. This means they can spend less and hire workers only when needed, like during busy seasons. But there are also problems with the gig economy. Many gig workers don’t have job security or basic rights. Some earn less than the minimum wage and don’t get benefits like paid holidays or sick leave. This can make life hard for workers, especially when they are sick or have no work. Some companies may take advantage of this by not treating workers fairly. In conclusion, the gig economy can be helpful for both workers and businesses, but it also has risks. To make it better, workers should get fair pay and more protection, even if they are not full-time employees.
Age Discrimination
Age discrimination occurs when someone is treated unfairly at work because of their age. This can affect hiring, promotions, training, or termination. It is illegal under Australian law, and all employees—young or older—must be given equal opportunity based on their skills and experience, not their age.
An unpaid placement is a type of work experience where a person works without pay, usually as part of a formal education or training program. These placements are legal if they are primarily for learning and benefit the student, not the business. They help individuals gain practical skills but must follow workplace laws to avoid exploitation.