Welcome!
On this “Random Acts of Kindness” Day, I deliver your favourite workplace newsletter.
Catch up on the things you need to know and some things that will make you laugh out loud.
In this issue there are musings, a novel career idea, a new “Key Dates” section, articles and sage advice in the “Dear Jen” column.
And of course, I share my recommendations for your viewing pleasure.
I hope this newsletter brings you some wisdom and joy!
Cheers,
Jen
What trend am I seeing out there in the workplace world?
Employer frustration with the Fair Work Act – particularly the General Protections provisions.
Adverse Action claims were never meant to be a fallback option for anyone who doesn’t qualify to bring an Unfair Dismissal claim. And yet… that’s exactly what they’ve become.
The Fair Work Commission’s inbox is bursting at the seams. My ears are bursting from clients’ screams.
Are Your Managers Carrying the Weight of HR Without the Support of HR?
Small to medium businesses without an in-house HR function need clear, cost-effective and practical advice to navigate people issues. These include:
✔ Hiring the right people
✔ Setting up simple, effective HR processes
✔ Managing performance issues early, clearly, and lawfully
✔ Understanding award coverage, pay rates, and entitlements
✔ Responding to complaints, conflict, and workplace tensions
✔ Reducing compliance risk without creating bureaucracy
✔ Distinguishing a “quick fix” from a legal landmine.
With 30 years’ experience as an HR specialist and owner of a construction firm, Sarah Ryding understands the pressures facing business owners and managers.
For a complimentary 15 minute call to explore how Sarah can support your business:
Contact HR Consultant Sarah Ryding: sarah@jenniferbicknell.com.au | 0418 246 547
Or Jennifer Bicknell: jen@jenniferbicknell.com.au | 0411 275 920
Job of the Week: Professional Bridesmaid (Yes, Really)
Ever wanted to get paid to be someone’s “bestie” for a day?
Professional bridesmaids are earning up to $10,000 to glide through weddings as undercover support crew. The role involves flawless acting, strategic small talk, and the ability to dodge nosy aunties while keeping a bride calm and camera ready. It’s part personal assistant, part secret agent.
Apparently business is booming for those willing to don the dress and commit to the backstory.
See: Bridesmaids for Hire (behind paywall) and Professional Bridesmaid
20 February 2026 – Love Your Pet Day (An excellent day to acknowledge your most loyal co-worker).
23 February 2026 – International Banana Bread Day (I can feel an office bakeoff coming on…just leave the pets at home).
8 March 2026 – International Womens’ Day.
1 July 2026 – Payroll Super commences. (Start preparing now)!
1 July 2026 – Commonwealth Paid Parental Leave scheme increases again and reaches 26 weeks, paid at the minimum wage.
The Email That Broke the News Before the Company Did
It’s one thing for you and your 15,999 closest colleagues to learn you’re being replaced by technology – it’s another to find out because someone hit “send” too soon.
Amazon accidentally revealed 16,000 layoffs of employees in the US, Canada, and Costa Rica a day early when an internal email about its AI-focused restructure went out ahead of schedule. Confusion followed, then confirmation that the cuts were real.
Take Out Point: Oops!
See: Amazon accidentally announces further 16,000 layoffs in AI pivot
What Happens When the Person Who Keeps You Organised… Doesn’t Work Here Anymore?
KPMG Australia is reported to be outsourcing 200 of its 265 Executive Assistant roles to the Philippines, with the first 100 roles to depart in April, followed by another 100 in May, saving the firm around $15 million per year.
A KPMG spokeswoman said that “In moving away from the practice of doing everything in-house, we are proposing a different resourcing model to provide support services. Consultation with our people remains ongoing.”
Take Out Point: If this model is replicated in other companies, the impact won’t stop at displaced EAs. Executives will soon discover how much of their high trust, high context work and productivity relied on seamless support that can’t be easily outsourced.
See: KPMG to dump 200 EA jobs as firm plans Philippines outsourcing (behind paywall)
Working from home can work itself out – Productivity Commission Submission
The Senate Education and Employment Legislation Committee is examining the Greens’ Fair Work Amendment (Right to Work from Home) Bill 2025.
This Bill seeks to enshrine a minimum right to request to work remotely up to two days per week available to all workers, while maintaining safeguards for employers where such arrangements are impractical or impossible due to the inherent requirements of the role.
In its submission, the Productivity Commission argues that many Australian workplaces have already settled into a hybrid “sweet spot”, and it is therefore unclear whether a legislated right to request is necessary. The Productivity Commission also warns that the Bill “may impede the ability of employers and workers to come to mutually beneficial arrangements if employers are unable to refuse requests they believe have genuine costs, such as those that flow from reduced collaboration”.
The Committee is due to report by 26 March 2026. The Victorian Government is reportedly preparing to introduce similar legislation later this year.
Take Out Point: The Productivity Commission’s message is essentially: hybrid work is working – and mandating it may create more rigidity than benefit. What do you think?
See: PC Submission – Working from home can work itself out
Fair Work Amendment (Right to Work from Home) Bill 2025
Reminder: From 1 July 2026 Superannuation Joins the Real Time Compliance Era
From 1 July 2026, employers will need to pay super at the same time as wages. The current quarterly payment cycle is being replaced with “payday super,” meaning contributions must reach an employee’s nominated fund within 7 business days of each pay run (with a slightly longer window for a new starter’s first payment).
The ATO will oversee and enforce the new rules, and employers are being urged to start preparing now by reviewing payroll systems, processes, and software to ensure they can meet the new timing requirements.
Take Out Point: Do not leave compliance until the last minute. Utilise the resources in the links below.
See: Payday Super Resources and Fact Sheet
Dear Jen,
My team insists on celebrating every tiny milestone. We’ve had three cakes this week.
All this celebrating is killing productivity.
Cheers,
Caked Out
Dear Caked Out,
Wow! Your team must be carbloading for a reason. Celebration? … fine. A coup? … not so fine.
Celebrations should be proportionate to the achievement. Finished the annual report? Cake. Survived another Teams update? Biscuit. Successfully located the stapler? No catering required.
If things escalate to “We hit inbox zero – cupcakes for everyone” introduce a formal Cake Approval Process. Nothing reins in enthusiasm like paperwork.
Cheers,
Jen
PS – sorry to do this, but don’t forget International Banana Bread Day on 23 February!
What I’m Watching
The Winter Olympics, of course. Years ago I made the heartbreaking choice to prioritise the law over my promising curling career. Regrets? Only every four years, when I’m reminded that sliding a rock down a sheet of ice while yelling at my broom-brushing buddies might have been my true calling.
Scotty James: Pipe Dreams (Netflix)
A surprisingly wholesome detour into halfpipe glory. Childhood obsession, Olympic pressure, and enough Aussie charm to make you briefly consider snowboarding – before remembering you hate subzero temperatures and have no desire to die on a mountain.
The Lincoln Lawyer (Netflix)
Season 4 of The Lincoln Lawyer lands with a twist: Mickey Haller, everyone’s favourite attorney who traded up from a car to an office, now finds himself… sorry, no spoilers. Let’s just say the tables have turned, the stakes are high, and thank you, Netflix, for dropping the whole season.
Crisis (7Plus)
An action thriller set in Washington DC, where a school field trip goes catastrophically wrong and the kids of powerful politicians and CEOs are kidnapped. FBI agents and frantic parents are pulled into a dangerous, vengeful plot masterminded by someone who is always one step ahead. I may have watched the whole series through my fingers.
Run Away (Netflix)
A thriller series based on the Harlan Coben novel, with the fabulous James Nesbitt as a father whose world implodes when his daughter disappears and spirals into addiction. It sounds grim, but don’t let that put you off. It’s fast, tense, twisty, and the kind of show that pulls you in before you realise you’ve committed to “just one more” until midnight.
His & Hers (Netflix)
A crime thriller about estranged spouses – a detective and a former news anchor – who end up investigating the same murder in their small hometown. As you do. Estranged spouses is one thing. Estranged spouses who start suspecting each other is a whole different level of awkward.
