NSW Right to Appeal Supreme Court Convictions for Workplace Relations Offences

Industrial Relations Amendment Bill 2025

6 May 2025: Passed by Parliament and signed off by the governor.

This bill kicks in: TBA

Legislative Assembly

Legislative Council

Assent

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Topics

court appeals employment law industrial relations public sector pay work health and safety worker remuneration workplace relations

Introduced by: The Hon Sophie Cotsis MP (ALP); The Hon Daniel Mookhey MLC (ALP)

Links to official parliament websites

Official page: progress through parliament

Official page: bill text and explanatory notes

Effects of this bill

If this bill passes, it means that:

People convicted of workplace relations offences can appeal to the Supreme Court on questions of law.
The Attorney General or Director of Public Prosecutions can appeal to the Court of Criminal Appeal if the Industrial Court acquits someone for a workplace relations offence.
The Industrial Court now hears civil proceedings about discriminatory or coercive conduct; these were previously heard by the District Court.
A single judicial member of the Industrial Court can hear certain appeals from the Local Court.
The Parliamentary Remuneration Tribunal must consider the government's fiscal position when setting basic salaries for members of Parliament.
The relevant Minister must appoint a judicial member of the Industrial Relations Commission as an arbitrator for health service applications.
Arbitrators for health services must consider the public interest and the state of the economy when making determinations.

The Debate

What different members said when this bill was debated:

Mark Buttigieg ALP

“Cameron Murphy. I acknowledge the member for Wagga Wagga, Dr Joe McGirr, who first introduced a bill in the other House in November last year to provide for visiting medical officer determinations to be arbitrated by a judicial member of the Industrial Relations Commission.”

Official source →

News articles and press releases

Second Reading Speech, Industrial Relations Amendment Bill 2025

Ms SOPHIE COTSIS, Minister for Industrial Relations — 2025-02-12

The overriding purpose of the Industrial Relations Amendment Bill 2025 is to make amendments to the Industrial Relations Act 1996 and other related legislation to support the efficient and effective operation of the recently re‑established Industrial Court. The bill also seeks to make a number of consequential amendments to various pieces of legislation that are necessary following the passage of the Industrial Relations Amendment Act 2023. That Act, amongst a range of other much-needed industrial relations reforms in this State, re-established the Industrial Court as part of the Industrial Relations Commission of New South Wales.