Service examples - labour hire licence

A sports club asks ABC Cleaning Pty Ltd (ABC) to provide cleaning staff for a large community sports event being held on their grounds. ABC agrees to supply 20 staff for five hours to perform general cleaning duties.

ABC is engaged to supply suitably qualified and experienced cleaners to the sports club. The workers can be directed by the sports club in terms of what work is done and how.

Yes

ABC Cleaning Pty Ltd is providing workers, therefore is considered to be a labour hire provider.

ABC Cleaning Pty Ltd enters into a contract with a local school to clean classrooms on a daily basis. The contract is for 12 months.

ABC decides how many cleaners are needed to get the job done.

No

ABC is providing a cleaning service to the school, not workers, therefore does not require a labour hire licence.

A hotel is preparing for an increase in accommodation bookings over Christmas and needs additional cleaners to cover this busy period. They approach ABC Cleaning Pty Ltd and request three cleaners for the two week period over Christmas.

Yes

ABC is providing a specific number of workers to the hotel to do work in and as part of the hotel’s business.

A grape grower asks Bob's Picking Company to pick all the vines on his property by the end of next month. Bob decides how many people are needed to finish the picking in time. The grape grower and Bob agree on a price per each row of vines.

No

Bob is providing a pruning service to the grower, not workers, therefore does not require a labour hire licence. It is irrelevant that the grape grower and Bob have agreed on a price per row.

A vegetable grower asks a backpacker lodge if they can supply workers to pick vegetables for an agreed rate. Once the vegetables are picked, the vegetable grower pays the backpacker lodge the agreed rate and the backpacker lodge then pays the workers directly.

Yes

The backpacker lodge owner is a labour hire provider, because the owner has an arrangement with the workers and will pay them, and provides workers to the vegetable grower to do work in and as part of the grower’s business.

A grain grower asks Harvesting Company SA to arrange for all the grain to be harvested during the upcoming harvest season. Harvesting Company SA determines the best approach and how many workers are required and when. The grain grower will pay an agreed amount to Harvesting Company SA.

No

The harvesting company is providing a service to the grain grower for the grain harvesting, not workers. It is irrelevant how the cost of the service provided is calculated or how the workers' pay rate is calculated.