Victoria’s proposed work-from-home laws will be delayed and revised to give employers greater scope to reject remote-working requests under changes being advanced by Premier Ben Carroll.
The legislation, which would give eligible employees a legal right to work from home for two days a week, will not take effect until 1 July 2027. Businesses with fewer than 15 employees will receive a further six-month grace period, with the rules applying to them from 1 January 2028.
The Victorian Government is expected to introduce the amendments to state parliament on Thursday, after Mr Carroll paused debate in the upper house shortly after becoming premier.
Under the revised proposal, employers will be able to refuse a request where working from home would cause a “material adverse impact” on the business. The bill previously referred to a “significant adverse impact”, setting a higher threshold for employers.
Companies will also have 28 days to respond to an employee seeking to work remotely for two days each week, extending the existing response period by a week.
The amendments are also expected to narrow the circumstances in which employers must pay for equipment and services needed for home working, including hardware, software and secure access to workplace systems.
An independent review of the legislation will take place after 18 months rather than three years, allowing the government to assess its effects sooner.
Mr Carroll said the changes were designed to preserve the proposed right while making the scheme workable for employers.
“Work from home works, and in Victoria, it will be your right,” he said. “These laws must work for business too – because the reality is, if it’s not practical, the laws won’t last.”
The proposal has faced sustained opposition from business groups, with research by HR platform Remote indicating that employers may respond by moving roles overseas, recruiting workers in other states or relying more heavily on contractors.
Its survey found that 43 per cent of Victorian businesses would consider offshoring jobs, while 36 per cent would consider shifting recruitment interstate. Almost half said they would be likely to increase their use of contractors.
Nick Martin, Remote’s Asia-Pacific executive, said employers were concerned the legislation could have unintended consequences for workers.
“While the legislation is yet to be passed, Victorian employers are signalling that the new laws, which were designed to give workers greater certainty around flexible work, could inadvertently deliver greater job insecurity and reduced opportunity for Victorian workers,” he said.
The executive director of the conservative industrial relations think tank HR Nicholls has also written to Mr Carroll seeking the legal advice and economic modelling underpinning the bill.
The letter questioned whether the proposed legislation was constitutionally valid and criticised the government for not publishing modelling on its likely cost or economic impact.
