The deadline for Victoria’s Labour Hire Licensing Act 2018 requires labour hire providers to apply for a licence to operate in Victoria by no later than today 30 October 2019.

This means that it will be illegal for companies to outsource workers in the state of Victoria if they haven't at least applied for a labour hire licence. The legislation was introduced as a way to crack down on labour hire firms who exploit, abuse or mistreat workers.

The Victorian government passed its Labour Hire Licensing Act on 20 June 2018.

According to 7News, more than 3,800 firms have applied for a licence in the past six months. Of those applications, 464 have been approved. However, 30% have had "compliance problems", meaning businesses have not proven they are meeting their obligations for worker conditions or workplace health and safety.

A number of businesses are trying to work through those issues, but Labour Hire Licensing Commissioner Steve Dargavel said more than 400 have decided to withdraw their application and exit the industry entirely.

"There are certainly some companies that have walked away from the industry because they cannot prove evidence of their compliance with workplace law," Dargavel said. “Others cannot produce satisfactory information to conclude they can become compliant.”

Dargavel added that there has been a last-minute flurry of licence applications ahead of the deadline. About 1,500 of all applicants were received in the past 14 days and 35% of them landed in the past 48 hours, with the state's Labour Hire Authority requesting additional information from many of them.

The state government has said that anyone caught hiring out workers without a licence, or without an application working through the system, will now be subject to prosecution and fines worth AUD 500,000.

Last year Queensland’s “Labour Hire Licensing Act 2017” came into effect on 16 April 2018.

In South Australia, from 1 November 2019, unlicensed labour hire service providers will face substantial penalties for operating without a licence. Businesses engaging workers via an unlicensed labour hire service provider also face penalties.

The South Australia government has previously announced that it planned to amend the legislation. The proposals are still going through the legislative process, but should the legislation pass, some businesses that have already applied for a licence may no longer require a licence.

For more on the labour hire legislation in Australia refer to SIA’s Asia Pacific Legal Update Q3 2019.