DETERMINATION

Fair Work Act 2009
s.156 - 4 yearly review of modern awards

4 year review of modern awards—Apprentice conditions
(AM2014/192)

AGED CARE AWARD 2010
(ODN AM2008/13)  [MA000018]

Variation to Modern Awards - insertion of apprentice conditions..

A. Further to the decision 1 of 17 December 2014 and pursuant to section 156(2)(b)(i) of the Fair Work Act 2009, the Aged Care Award 2010 is varied as follows:

1. By inserting after clause 14.4 the following:

14.5 Apprentice conditions of employment

(a) Except as provided in this clause or where otherwise stated, all conditions of employment specified in this award apply to apprentices.

(b) Where an apprentice is required to attend block release training for training identified in or associated with their training contract, and such training requires an overnight stay, the employer must pay for the excess reasonable travel costs incurred by the apprentice in the course of travelling to and from such training. Provided that this clause will not apply where the apprentice could attend an alternative Registered Training Organisation (RTO) and the use of the more distant RTO is not agreed between the employer and the apprentice.

(c) For the purposes of (b) above, excess reasonable travel costs include the total costs of reasonable transportation (including transportation of tools where required), accommodation costs incurred while travelling (where necessary) and reasonable expenses incurred while travelling, including meals, which exceed those incurred in travelling to and from work. For the purposes of this subclause, excess travel costs do not include payment for travelling time or expenses incurred while not travelling to and from block release training.

(d) The amount payable by an employer under (b) may be reduced by an amount the apprentice is eligible to receive for travel costs to attend block release training under a Government apprentice assistance scheme. This will only apply if an apprentice has either received such assistance or their employer has advised them in writing of the availability of such assistance.

(e) All training fees charged by an RTO for prescribed courses and the cost of all prescribed textbooks (excluding those textbooks which are available in the employer’s technical library) for the apprenticeship , which are paid by an apprentice, shall be reimbursed by the employer within six months of the commencement of the apprenticeship or the relevant stage of the apprenticeship, or within three months of the commencement of the training provided by the RTO, whichever is the later, unless there is unsatisfactory progress.

(f) An employer may meet its obligations under (e) by paying any fees and/or cost of textbooks directly to the RTO.

(g) An apprentice is entitled to be released from work without loss of continuity of employment and to payment of the appropriate wages to attend any training and assessment specified in, or associated with, the training contract.

(h) Time spent by an apprentice in attending any training and/or assessment specified in, or associated with, the training contract is to be regarded as time worked for the employer for the purposes of calculating the apprentice’s wages and determining the apprentice’s employment conditions. This subclause operates subject to the provisions of Schedule F – School-based Apprentices.

(i) No apprentice will, except in an emergency, work or be required to work overtime or shiftwork at times which would prevent their attendance at training consistent with their training contract.

B. This determination comes into operation on 1 January 2015.

SENIOR DEPUTY PRESIDENT

 1   [2014] FWCFB 9156

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