The Victorian Government have created a new Victorian Permit Worker Scheme for any employers in permitted industries with employees required to attend work on-site. Please see our previous update on Stage 4 Business Restrictions which outlines permitted industries that may remain open.

From tomorrow any employee required to attend work on-site will be required to carry an authorised permit (electronic version is fine) to show police if requested. Failure to do so will mean on the spot fines of $1652 for employees and $9913 for business. We have attached the permit template for your information. Please find below some more useful information.

Who is eligible for the permit?

• Business must be on list of permitted activities
• Employee is working in an approved category for on-site work, and
• the employee cannot work from home.

Please note there are substantial fines for any employers providing permits to employees who do not satisfy these eligibility requirements ($19,825 for individuals and $99,132 for businesses).

What do you need to complete the permit?

• name, ABN, company address and trading name
• the name and date of birth of the employee
• the employee’s regular hours and place of work (see below if they do not have regular hours)
• to meet all eligibility criteria, including that the business is a permitted activity
• to meet all relevant legal obligations
• to have a COVID-19 safe plan in place
• to authorise a person or people to issue the worker permit
• Sign off from an authorised individual (such as CEO, Operations Manager, HR Manager who will be accountable for details they provide and will be contacted by Police)

What if my employee does not have regular hours?

You can issue worker permits for specified date ranges for employees who do not have regular hours. It is also possible to issue more than one permit if there is a new rostering period – if there is an overlap in rostering periods the employee will need to carry both permits.

What if my employee needs to pick up a last minute shift not outlined in the permit?

This is permitted, they will just have to carry their existing work permit. The authorised contact on the form should be available if police need to verify they are required to attend work for that shift.

Can we have employees working across multiple sites?

• Employers are required to minimise the requirement for employees to work at different sites unless absolutely necessary
• Each site should have designated authorised employees who are required to work there
• Any employee working at multiple sites must keep a log book detailing the dates, times and places of attendance.

What is I am a sole trader?

You must issue the permit and sign as both the employer and employee

What if we have a sub-contractor?

The employer issuing the permit can be the principal contractor or the sub-contractor if they are a sole trader.