A Bill for an Act to amend the Paid Parental Leave Act 2010, and for related purposes
The Parliament of Australia enacts:
1 Short title
This Act may be cited as the Paid Parental Leave Amendment Act 2014.
2 Commencement
This Act commences on 1 July 2014.
3 Schedule(s)
Each Act that is specified in a Schedule to this Act is amended or repealed as set out in the applicable items in the Schedule concerned, and any other item in a Schedule to this Act has effect according to its terms.
Schedule 1—Paid parental leave
Part 1—Amendments
Paid Parental Leave Act 2010
1 Section 4 (paragraph relating to Part 3‑3)
Omit “(e.g. the person is a contractor and so does not have an employer)”, substitute “(e.g. the person’s employer does not make an election to pay instalments to the person)”.
2 Section 4 (paragraph relating to Part 3‑3)
Omit “is being reviewed or”.
3 Section 4 (paragraph relating to Part 3‑5)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
Part 3‑5 is about employer determinations. An employer is only required to pay instalments to a person if an employer determination is in force for the employer and the person. An employer determination cannot be made unless certain conditions are met (e.g. the employer has made an election to pay instalments to the person).
4 Section 6 (definition of acceptance notice)
Omit “section 103”, substitute “paragraph 103(1)(a)”.
5 Section 6 (definition of bank account information)
Omit “subsection 104(2)”, substitute “paragraph 109(2)(b)”.
6 Section 6 (definition of employer determination decision)
Repeal the definition.
7 Section 6
Insert:
non‑acceptance notice: see paragraph 103(1)(b).
8 Section 6 (definition of transfer day)
Omit “84(3), (4) and (5)”, substitute “84(4) and (5)”.
9 Subsection 64(1) (note)
Omit “Sections 93 and 94 affect”, substitute “Section 94 affects”.
10 Section 83 (third paragraph)
Omit “is being reviewed or”.
11 Subsection 84(3)
Repeal the subsection.
12 Section 85 (heading)
Repeal the heading, substitute:
85 Payment of arrears—employer determination revoked before coming into force
13 Subsection 85(1)
Repeal the subsection, substitute:
(1) This section applies if:
(a) the Secretary is required to pay an instalment to a person under subsection 84(4) (which deals with payment of instalments where an employer determination is revoked); and
(b) the employer determination made for the person and the person’s employer has never come into force.
14 Subsection 85(3)
Omit “or (b)”.
15 Section 93
Repeal the section.
16 Section 100
Repeal the section, substitute:
100 Guide to this Part
This Part is about employer determinations. An employer is only required to pay instalments to a person if an employer determination has been made and is in force for the employer and the person.
An employer determination cannot be made unless certain conditions are met. One of those conditions is that the employer has made an election to pay instalments and that election applies to the person.
Even though an employer determination is made, the obligations on the employer to pay instalments to the person only arise when the employer determination is in force. An employer determination comes into force when the employer gives the Secretary an acceptance notice. Once the determination comes into force, it stays in force unless the Secretary revokes it.
17 Paragraphs 101(1)(b) and (c)
Repeal the paragraphs, substitute:
(b) the employer has made an election under section 109 to pay instalments and that election applies to the person; and
(c) the person has consented in the claim to the employer paying instalments to the person; and
18 Paragraph 101(1)(e)
Repeal the paragraph.
19 Paragraph 101(1)(f)
Omit “(c) to (e) are satisfied in relation to more than one employer of the person (other than because of subsection (2))”, substitute “(b) to (d) are satisfied in relation to more than one employer of the person”.
20 Subsection 101(2)
Repeal the subsection.
21 Section 103
Repeal the section, substitute:
103 Employer response to notice of employer determination
(1) If an employer is given a notice under section 102 that an employer determination has been made, the employer may, within the period referred to in subsection (2):
(a) give the Secretary a written notice (the acceptance notice) that complies with section 104; or
(b) give the Secretary notice (the non‑acceptance notice), orally or in writing, declaring that the employer does not accept the employer’s obligations to pay instalments to the person.
(2) For the purposes of subsection (1), the period is 14 days, or such longer period allowed by the Secretary, after the date of the notice given under section 102.
22 Subsections 104(2) and (5)
Repeal the subsections.
23 Section 105
Repeal the section.
24 Subsection 107(1)
Omit “or (3)”.
25 Subsection 107(2) (heading)
Repeal the heading.
26 Subsection 107(2)
Omit “or a compliance notice given under section 157”.
27 Subsection 107(3)
Repeal the subsection.
28 Subsection 108(1) (after table item 1)
Insert:
| 1A | The employer has given a non‑acceptance notice for the person under paragraph 103(1)(b). | The day of the revocation. |
29 Subsection 108(1) (table item 2, column 1)
Omit “for the person as required by a compliance notice given for a contravention of”, substitute “or a non‑acceptance notice for the person in the period referred to in”.
30 Subsection 108(6)
Repeal the subsection.
31 Subsection 109(1)
After “An employer”, insert “who has an ABN”.
32 Paragraph 109(2)(b)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
(b) contain the following information (bank account information) about an account held and maintained by the employer with a financial institution into which PPL funding amounts can be paid:
(i) the account number;
(ii) the BSB number of the account;
(iii) the name in which the account is held;
(iv) the name of the financial institution.
33 Section 146 (table items 10 and 11)
Repeal the items.
34 Subsection 157(1)
Repeal the subsection, substitute:
Compliance notice given by Secretary
(1) This section applies if the Secretary reasonably believes that a person has contravened subsection 82(2) (which deals with notifying the Secretary if certain events happen).
35 Subsection 159(1)
Omit “one or more”, substitute “either or both”.
36 Paragraphs 159(1)(b) and (c)
Repeal the paragraphs.
37 Section 202 (last paragraph)
Repeal the paragraph, substitute:
The third kind of review is where an employer applies for internal review of decisions that affect the employer in relation to PPL funding amounts (those decisions are “employer funding amount decisions”).
38 Subsection 203(2) (note 1)
Repeal the note.
39 Subsection 203(2) (note 2)
Omit “Note 2”, substitute “Note”.
40 Subsection 205(1)
Omit “, 207”.
41 Section 207
Repeal the section.
42 Subsection 209(2)
Omit “, other than an application under section 207 (which deals with application for review of employer determination decisions),”.
43 Paragraphs 210(2)(a) and (b)
Omit “an employer determination decision or”.
44 Paragraph 212(1)(c)
Repeal the paragraph.
45 Subsection 212(5)
Omit “or (1)(c)”.
46 Paragraphs 223(1)(a), (b), (c) and (d)
Omit “an employer determination decision or”.
47 Subsection 224(1)
Repeal the subsection.
48 Subsection 224(2)
Omit “if the decision is an employer funding amount decision”.
49 Subsection 224(3)
Omit “(1) or”.
50 Paragraph 225(2)(b)
Repeal the paragraph.
51 Subsection 278(1)
Omit “(1)”.
52 Subsection 278(2)
Repeal the subsection.
53 Subsection 299(1)
Repeal the subsection, substitute:
(1) The PPL rules or the regulations may provide that a person may make an election under section 109 to pay instalments to another person if both persons are in a relationship that is similar to the relationship between an employer and an employee.
Part 2—Application and transitional provisions
54 Application of amendments
The amendments made by Part 1 of this Schedule apply in relation to an employer determination that is made on or after the commencement of this Act in relation to a claim for parental leave pay that is made before, on or after that commencement.
55 Transitional provision—elections made before commencement
An election under section 109 of the Paid Parental Leave Act 2010 that is in force immediately before the commencement of this Act ceases to be in force at that commencement.
56 Transitional provision—revoking employer determinations made before commencement
(1) This item applies if:
(a) an employer determination was made before the commencement of this Act for a person and the person’s employer; and
(b) the determination had not been revoked before that commencement; and
(c) the person’s PPL period had not started before that commencement.
(2) The Secretary must revoke the determination.
(3) The Paid Parental Leave Act 2010 applies as if a revocation under subitem (2) of this item were made under subsection 108(1) of that Act.