Other employees also working on the Olympics continue to have their working arrangements set by the relevant industrial instrument, e.g. NSW Government staff working on the Olympics continue to be covered by State awards or agreements, some of which have been varied to specifically take account of the Olympic Games. Where industrial disputes arise, they are generally dealt with by the same industrial tribunal that has established the award or approved the agreement covering employees. For example, a dispute involving NSW Government staff would typically be dealt with by the NSW Industrial Relations Commission while a dispute involving airline employees would typically be dealt with by the federal Australian Industrial Relations Commission. Further information in this fact sheet deals with the key elements of the federal workplace relations system. Important changes to the federal workplace relations system were introduced by the Workplace Relations Act 1996.
Agreement making is now the focus of the Australian workplace relations system.
This, together with the simplification of awards so that they serve as a safety net, means that agreement making is now the main way wages and conditions are settled at the enterprise and workplace level. State Governments, including NSW, have also introduced changes aimed at decentralising workplace relations. Features of the federal system Decentralised agreement making Formal collective agreements can be made directly between employers and employees as well as with employee associations. Formal individual agreements, known as Australian Workplace Agreements, can be made directly between an employer and an employee. More than 17,000 collective agreements have been certified under the Workplace Relations Act in the first three years of its operation.