Workplace legislation has changed significantly since 2024, with positive duty obligations, right to disconnect provisions, and psychosocial safety requirements now in effect for employers of every size. HR policies drafted before 2024 are now almost certainly non-compliant. For a business without an internal HR department, that is not a theoretical risk: it is a compliance gap that exposes the business to Fair Work claims, WHS prosecution, and reputational damage.
Brookvale HR Solutions develops HR policies, employment contracts, and compliance frameworks for businesses across Australia, from small business owners to established employers with a hundred staff or more. Daniel Holbrook starts with a gap analysis of your existing workplace policies and procedures, identifies the legal obligations specific to your industry and workforce, and builds every policy in plain language that your managers can implement from day one. You work directly with Daniel throughout, not a junior consultant. That direct access matters whether you're a small business owner wearing every hat or a general manager responsible for 70 staff with no internal HR support.
Employment law imposes a range of obligations on employers, and they apply whether you employ 5 people or 200. Few of them require a policy by name; most require an outcome that your policies and procedures help you achieve and show. The Fair Work Act and National Employment Standards set the minimum entitlements; your policies and procedures operationalise them. Understanding which workplace policies and procedures are required under current workplace laws is the first step toward HR compliance.
Something I consistently observe is that businesses treat employment contracts and policies as separate exercises. The contract comes from a lawyer, the policies come from the internet, and the two do not align. A contract references a probationary period the policy never addresses. A leave policy contradicts the contract. Managers end up making it up as they go, and the business carries the legal exposure. The methodology below treats your contracts, policies, and procedures as one coherent system.
Begin with a comprehensive review of your existing policies, contracts, and procedures, or start from scratch if your business has none. Identify the legal obligations specific to your business: a policy framework for a construction firm looks different from one built for professional services or hospitality.
Draft policies in plain language that your managers can implement and your employees can understand. Every document is built for the specific operations of your business, not adapted from a generic template, and aligned with the contracts that govern day-to-day work.
Work with your managers to implement the new policy suite, including training where required and a clear rollout sequence. Documentation that sits in a drawer protects nobody. Implementation support ensures policies translate into practice.
Establish a review cadence so policies stay current as workplace legislation evolves. New legislation is reviewed against your framework as it lands, and policies updated before the gap creates exposure.
Daniel's process begins with a gap analysis of your existing policies, or starts from scratch if your business has none. He identifies the legal obligations specific to your business, drafts new policies in plain language, works with your managers to implement policies through training where required, and establishes a review schedule to keep documentation current as workplace laws evolve. With experience across dozens of industries, and clients from small and medium businesses through to larger employers, Daniel understands that a policy framework for a construction business looks different from one built for a professional services firm. Your policies are built for the specific needs of your business, not adapted from a generic template, and the framework scales as your business grows. For businesses that need the full suite of policies, procedures, and employment contracts, the Workplace Foundations Package covers everything from initial gap analysis through to implementation. Learn more about Daniel's qualifications and approach on the About page.
These are the core policies Daniel builds first, because each one serves a distinct legal or operational function. The list is the same whether you employ 8 people or 80; the drafting differs. Newer exposures join the list as legislation and technology move; a generative AI workplace policy now sits alongside the traditional core set for many businesses.
What happens when you haven't got one? Every piece of behavioural misconduct becomes a negotiation, because the employer has no documented standard to point to. The employee code of conduct sets expectations for workplace behaviour, professional standards, and consequences for breach. It is the foundation document that other company policies reference, covering matters from use of company property to professional conduct and social media behaviour. A well-drafted code of conduct provides the basis for managing misconduct and taking disciplinary action when standards are not met.
Positive duty obligations changed this area in December 2022. Under the Sex Discrimination Act, employers must take proactive steps to prevent sexual harassment, sex discrimination, and related conduct. A compliant policy goes beyond a generic statement to include reporting pathways, response procedures, and training obligations for managers and staff. This is one of the most significant areas of workplace relations reform in recent years, and small businesses receive no exemption.
Leave management policies operationalise National Employment Standards entitlements: annual leave; personal and carer's leave; compassionate leave; long service leave (state-based); community service leave, including jury service and voluntary emergency management activities; and flexible work arrangements.
Clear policies covering leave entitlements, work hours, and work arrangement provisions reduce disputes and ensure consistent application across your workforce. The Fair Work Ombudsman publishes the minimum entitlements, from annual leave accruals to carer's leave evidence requirements; a written policy is how a small business applies them consistently when there is no HR manager on staff.
A documented performance management framework protects the employer when dismissal decisions are challenged. It sets out a fair process for addressing underperformance and misconduct, ensures fair treatment and procedural fairness at every stage, and creates the documentation trail that the Fair Work Commission expects if a termination is challenged. A clear policy can help demonstrate that the employer acted fairly and followed due process.
No law requires a standalone WHS policy. What the law requires is that every business ensures, so far as reasonably practicable, the health and safety of its workers (WHS Act s 19), and that includes managing psychosocial risks under the WHS Regulation alongside physical safety risks. A written WHS policy and procedures are the practical way to show how the business meets that duty, and a workplace health and safety policy is one of the first documents a regulator asks for after an incident.
For a small business in Australia, the Fair Work Act 2009 applies differently in several areas, and your policies and procedures should reflect that. An employer with fewer than 15 employees, counted by head count including regular casual employees and any associated entities, is a small business employer under the Act. Employees of a small business can only bring an unfair dismissal claim after 12 months of employment, rather than the 6 months that applies to larger employers, and a dismissal that follows the Small Business Fair Dismissal Code is taken to be fair by the Fair Work Commission.
None of that protection is automatic. It depends on following the Code and documenting the process, which is exactly what a properly drafted performance management policy delivers. Small businesses need documentation that reflects these thresholds, so Daniel builds policies for small business clients with them baked in. If your headcount is above 15, the same provisions work in reverse: the minimum employment period drops to 6 months and the Code's protections do not apply, so your performance management documentation has to stand on its own rather than restating generic obligations written for a corporate HR department. Either way, the documents reflect the obligations that actually apply to your business needs and headcount.
Employment contracts must comply with the National Employment Standards, correctly reference the applicable modern award or enterprise agreement, and observe the fixed-term contract limitations introduced under recent legislative amendments. Onboarding matters too: knowing which documents and policies to provide to new starters, including the Fair Work Information Statement and casual information statements where required, is part of getting the framework right. For a detailed guide to employment contract types and requirements, visit the blog for educational content on this topic. Daniel drafts, reviews, and updates employment contracts to ensure they comply with current legislation and reflect the specific terms of the role. The Fair Work Ombudsman's guidance on employer obligations and employment contracts is available at fairwork.gov.au/starting-employment.
The Closing Loopholes No. 2 Act 2024 changed how casual conversion works. Four short questions below give a general eligibility assessment under the updated NES provisions. Not a formal determination. Enterprise Agreement provisions may vary.
Tool
Step 1 of 5
Many small business owners download template policies and assume compliance. Templates are generic, often outdated, and do not account for industry-specific obligations, modern award interactions, or the legislative changes that have reshaped employer obligations since 2024. A generic code of conduct does not address your workplace, an off-the-shelf harassment policy does not meet your positive duty requirements, and a downloaded leave policy does not reflect your award coverage. Free HR policy templates are where many businesses start; they are rarely where a compliant business finishes.
Every document Brookvale HR Solutions produces reflects your actual operations, your industry, and your workforce. Daniel builds workplace policies and procedures that your managers can implement and your employees can understand, because documentation that sits in a drawer protects nobody. That is the difference between best practice and box-ticking. If you are weighing up outsourcing HR, policy development is often the first piece a business hands to an external consultant.
If your business has no policies in place and you are unsure where to start, visit the No HR Policies page for guidance on the first steps.
The Workplace Foundations Package covers everything: employment contracts, core policies, procedures, and implementation support, for $4,000.
You work directly with Daniel throughout the process, not a junior consultant. Two credentials underwrite the work:
Commercial context shapes every policy decision. Policies are not drafted in a vacuum. They are designed to fit how your business actually operates, what your managers can realistically enforce, and how legal exposure compounds over time.
Psychosocial hazard literacy across every policy framework. The post-2023 WHS landscape requires WHS, anti-discrimination, and harassment policies to operate as a coordinated system, not isolated documents. The Cert IV WHS underwrites that coordination.
Every policy framework, contract review, and compliance audit is delivered personally by Daniel. No handoffs, no juniors, no shared engagement teams.
Read more about Daniel's qualifications and experience on the About page.
“We recently worked with Brookvale HR Solutions to conduct a full HR audit, implement a new HR and safety policy suite, and resolve a difficult employee performance issue. Dan made the whole process straightforward, gave very practical advice, and ensured we were compliant at every step. We're now much clearer and more confident in how we manage our team, and we feel our HR and safety foundations are in a much stronger position. We will continue working with Dan and the team for all our HR needs and highly recommend them to any business needing HR support.”
Common questions on policy compliance, legal requirements, and the practical mechanics of getting it right.
The complete HR framework package including employment contracts, policies, and procedures built from scratch or rebuilt to meet current standards.
View Workplace Foundations PackageA 15-point gap analysis identifying compliance risks across your contracts, policies, and operational processes. The audit fee is fully credited if you engage Brookvale HR Solutions to implement the recommendations.
View the HR Compliance AuditA specific compliance plan addressing positive duty obligations under the Sex Discrimination Act.
View the Positive Duty PlanAll pricing is exclusive of GST.
You'll leave the call with a clear view of what needs to change, what it will cost, and the sequence to get there. For more information on your rights and obligations, visit the tools hub for interactive compliance resources.
