Terms of Service

These Terms of Service govern your use of the IndustrialHR website and the services we provide, including the IndustrialHR Alliance subscription and specialist project work.

In these terms, IndustrialHR, we, us and our mean CER Consultants Pty Ltd (ABN 50 688 434 424), trading as Industrial HR. You, your and the Client mean the organisation or person engaging our services or using this website.

By using this website, subscribing to Alliance or engaging us for project work, you accept these terms. If you do not accept them, please do not use the website or our services.

Where we have issued you a separate written engagement, proposal or subscription agreement, that document applies alongside these terms. If there is an inconsistency, the separate engagement document prevails to the extent of the inconsistency.

IndustrialHR provides human resources and industrial relations advisory services to employers. Our services fall into two categories.

IndustrialHR Alliance is a subscription providing written HR advice by email, award and entitlement interpretation, policy guidance, access to templates and documentation, and proactive risk alerts.

Project work covers specialist matters engaged separately and scoped in advance. This includes workplace investigations, wage and award compliance and payroll remediation, formal performance and capacity processes, restructures and redundancy programs, enterprise bargaining, workplace reviews and culture diagnostics, and structured case management.

We may change, expand or discontinue elements of our services. Where a change materially affects a service you are currently receiving, we will give you reasonable notice.

3.1 We do not provide legal advice. IndustrialHR is a human resources and industrial relations advisory practice. We are not a law firm, we do not hold a practising certificate, and nothing we provide constitutes legal advice or creates a solicitor-client relationship. No legal professional privilege attaches to our communications, documents or reports.

3.2 You may need independent legal advice. Some matters require advice from a qualified legal practitioner. Where we consider that to be the case, we will tell you. Deciding whether to obtain that advice remains your responsibility, and we recommend you do so for any matter carrying significant legal or financial exposure.

3.3 We do not act as your representative. We do not appear for you or represent you in proceedings before the Fair Work Commission, any court or any tribunal, unless we have expressly agreed to provide permitted support in writing and any necessary permission has been granted.

3.4 Advice is based on the information you provide. Our advice, findings and recommendations are formed on the information available to us at the time. Where information is incomplete, inaccurate or provided late, this affects the advice we can give. We are not responsible for outcomes arising from information that was withheld, incorrect or misleading.

3.5 Advice is current at the time it is given. Industrial regulations, Modern Awards and workplace obligations change. Advice given at one point in time may not remain accurate later. We are not obliged to update previously issued advice unless you engage us to do so, though we may issue general risk alerts to Alliance subscribers.

3.6 Outcomes are not guaranteed. We work to an evidence-based and defensible standard. We cannot control how an employee, a regulator, a tribunal or a court will respond to a matter, and we do not warrant or guarantee any particular result.

3.7 Decisions remain yours. We provide advice, process design, documentation and support. You remain the employer, and all employment decisions, including decisions to discipline, dismiss, restructure or make payments, are made by you and remain your responsibility.

4.1 An engagement begins when you accept a written proposal, subscribe to Alliance, or instruct us to commence work and we confirm acceptance in writing.

4.2 Project work is scoped before it starts. The scope sets out what is included, what is excluded and the basis for our fees.

4.3 Work outside an agreed scope is treated as a variation. If a matter expands materially, for example additional allegations emerge in an investigation or a payroll review identifies a broader issue, we will tell you before undertaking the additional work.

4.4 We may decline to accept an engagement, or decline to continue one, including where we identify a conflict of interest, where we are asked to act in a way inconsistent with our professional obligations, or where we consider the matter falls outside our scope.

You agree to:

• give us accurate, complete and timely information, including relevant employment records, payroll data, policies and correspondence;
• provide instructions promptly, particularly on matters running to statutory timeframes;
• tell us about any related proceedings, claims, regulatory contact or previous advice that could affect the matter;
• implement processes as advised, and tell us where you decide to depart from our advice;
• maintain the confidentiality of documents and advice we provide, in line with clause 10; and
• meet your own obligations as an employer, including under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), applicable Modern Awards or enterprise agreements, work health and safety legislation and privacy legislation.

Where you depart from our advice, or act on it in a modified form, we are not responsible for the consequences of that decision.

6.1 Subscription fee. Alliance is charged at three dollars (AUD) per employee per week, based on your employee headcount. The method for counting casual and part-time employees is confirmed with you at the time of subscription. Fees are exclusive of GST unless stated otherwise.

6.2 Headcount changes. You agree to notify us of material changes to your headcount. We may adjust your subscription fee to reflect your current headcount, with notice.

6.3 What is included. Alliance covers written advisory support on everyday HR and industrial relations questions, award and entitlement interpretation, policy guidance, access to templates and documentation, and risk alerts.

6.4 Fair use. Alliance is offered on an unlimited basis for advisory questions of the kind described in clause 6.3. It is not a substitute for project services. We may contact you where usage indicates that a matter requires scoped project work.

6.5 What is excluded. Alliance does not include workplace investigations, wage non-compliance analysis or payroll remediation, formal performance and capacity processes, restructures and redundancy programs, enterprise bargaining, complex disputes, or attendance at meetings, mediations or conferences. These are quoted and engaged as project work.

6.6 Response times. We respond to Alliance enquiries promptly and within the timeframe communicated to you at the time of subscription. Response times are indicative and may be affected by the complexity of a question or by periods of high demand.

6.7 Term, billing and cancellation. Alliance is billed monthly in advance. There is no minimum term. Either party may cancel at any time by written notice. Fees already paid for a current billing period are not refundable except where required by law.

6.8 Fee changes. We may vary subscription pricing by giving written notice before the new pricing takes effect. If you do not accept the new pricing, you may cancel before it takes effect.

6.9 Suspension. We may suspend access to Alliance where fees remain unpaid after the due date and we have given you notice.

7.1 Basis of charging. Project work is charged on an hourly basis at the rate set out in your engagement documentation, unless we have agreed a fixed fee in writing.

7.2 Estimates. Any estimate we provide is an assessment based on the information available at the time. It is not a fixed quote. Where it becomes apparent that a matter will materially exceed an estimate, we will tell you before continuing.

7.3 Disbursements. Reasonable disbursements, including travel, accommodation, transcription and third-party costs, are charged in addition to fees. We will seek your approval before incurring significant disbursements.

7.4 Invoicing and payment. Invoices are issued monthly and payable within 30 days. All fees are exclusive of GST unless stated otherwise.

7.5 Late payment. Where an invoice remains unpaid after the due date, we may charge interest at 10% per annum calculated daily, suspend work on current matters, and recover reasonable costs of collection.

7.6 Deposits. We may require payment in advance or a deposit before commencing a matter, particularly for investigations and remediation projects.

8.1 Where we are engaged to conduct a workplace investigation, we act as an independent investigator. Our role is to gather and assess evidence and to make findings of fact.

8.2 Findings are made on the balance of probabilities, based on the evidence available at the time of the investigation.

8.3 An investigation report contains findings, not employment decisions. Decisions about disciplinary action, dismissal or any other outcome are made by you as the employer.

8.4 Procedural fairness requires that certain information, including the substance of allegations, is disclosed to participants. You acknowledge that complete confidentiality cannot be maintained within an investigation process.

8.5 We may decline to make a finding where the evidence does not allow one to be made, and we will say so in the report.

8.6 Investigation timeframes depend on the number of allegations, the availability of participants and the volume of material. Estimated timeframes are indicative.

9.1 We communicate primarily by email. You consent to us communicating with you electronically and to sending documents and advice by email.

9.2 Email is not a secure medium. While we take reasonable steps to protect information, we are not responsible for interception, corruption or unauthorised access occurring in transit outside our control.

9.3 You are responsible for ensuring the contact details you give us are current, and for controlling who within your organisation has access to advice we provide.

10.1 Each party agrees to keep the other's confidential information confidential and to use it only for the purposes of the engagement.

10.2 Confidential information does not include information that is publicly available other than through a breach of these terms, was already lawfully known to the receiving party, or is independently developed.

10.3 We may disclose confidential information where required by law, where required to comply with a lawful direction of a court, tribunal or regulator, where necessary to conduct an investigation in accordance with clause 8.4, or with your consent.

10.4 We may refer to the fact of our engagement in general terms for marketing purposes, without identifying you, unless you tell us in writing that you would prefer we did not.

11.1 We retain all intellectual property rights in our templates, documents, policies, frameworks, reports, methodologies and other materials, including materials prepared during an engagement.

11.2 On payment of our fees, we grant you a non-exclusive, non-transferable licence to use those materials within your own organisation for your own employment purposes.

11.3 You may not resell, licence, publish, distribute or otherwise make our materials available to any third party, or use them to provide services to others, without our written consent.

11.4 You retain ownership of the information, records and data you provide to us.

11.5 Website content, including text, graphics, logos and design, is owned by or licensed to IndustrialHR and may not be reproduced without our written consent.

We handle personal information in accordance with the Privacy Act 1988 (Cth) and the Australian Privacy Principles. Our Privacy Policy sets out how we collect, hold, use and disclose personal information, and is available at industrialhr.com.au/privacy-policy.

Where you provide us with personal information about your employees or other individuals, you confirm you are entitled to do so, and that you have met your own notification obligations to those individuals.

We retain engagement records, working papers and correspondence for 7 years, after which they may be securely destroyed. You are responsible for maintaining your own employment records as required under the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) and related regulations.

We take reasonable steps to identify conflicts of interest before accepting an engagement. Where a conflict arises during an engagement, we will tell you promptly and discuss how it should be managed, which may include ceasing to act.

We may engage suitably qualified contractors or specialists to assist in delivering our services. We remain responsible to you for the services provided, and anyone engaged by us is bound by equivalent confidentiality obligations.

16.1 Australian Consumer Law. Nothing in these terms excludes, restricts or modifies any guarantee, right or remedy you have under the Australian Consumer Law or any other legislation that cannot lawfully be excluded.

16.2 Limitation. Where our liability can lawfully be limited, our liability for a failure to comply with a consumer guarantee is limited, at our option, to resupplying the services or paying the cost of having the services resupplied.

16.3 Cap. To the extent permitted by law, our total aggregate liability arising out of or in connection with our services is limited to the total fees paid by you to us in the 12 months preceding the event giving rise to the claim.

16.4 Consequential loss. To the extent permitted by law, we are not liable for indirect or consequential loss, loss of profit, loss of revenue, loss of opportunity, loss of goodwill, or penalties, fines or compensation orders imposed on you by a court, tribunal or regulator.

16.5 Client decisions. We are not liable for loss arising from your decision to act, or not to act, on our advice, from your departure from our advice, or from information you failed to provide or provided inaccurately.

16.6 Professional indemnity. We maintain professional indemnity insurance. Details are available on request.

You indemnify us against any claim, loss, damage or cost arising from your breach of these terms, from information you provided that was inaccurate, incomplete or misleading, or from your use of our materials in a manner not permitted under clause 11.

This indemnity does not apply to the extent the claim, loss, damage or cost arises from our negligence or breach of these terms.

18.1 Either party may terminate an engagement by giving written notice.

18.2 We may suspend or terminate immediately where fees remain unpaid after notice, where you breach these terms and do not remedy the breach within 14 days, where a conflict of interest cannot be managed, or where we are asked to act in a way inconsistent with our professional or ethical obligations.

18.3 On termination, you remain liable for fees and disbursements incurred up to the date of termination, including work in progress.

18.4 Clauses relating to fees, confidentiality, intellectual property, liability, indemnity and governing law survive termination.

We are not liable for any delay or failure to perform arising from events beyond our reasonable control, including natural disasters, pandemics, industrial action, telecommunications or power failure, or government action. We will tell you promptly and work with you to minimise the effect.

20.1 Content on this website, including articles, blog posts, checklists and downloadable resources, is general information only. It does not take into account your particular circumstances and is not advice on which you should rely.

20.2 The HR Compliance Checklist and any similar resource is a general starting point for identifying potential gaps. It is not a complete assessment of your obligations and using it does not establish compliance.

20.3 We take reasonable care to ensure website content is accurate at the time of publication, though regulations change and content may become out of date.

20.4 We do not warrant that the website will be available without interruption or free of errors.

20.5 The website may link to third-party sites. We do not control those sites and are not responsible for their content, accuracy or practices.

If a dispute arises, the parties agree to first attempt to resolve it by discussion in good faith. Either party may then refer the dispute to mediation before commencing proceedings, other than for urgent interlocutory relief or the recovery of unpaid fees.

We may update these terms. The current version is published on this website with the date it was last updated. Continued use of our services after an update constitutes acceptance. Where a change materially affects an existing engagement, we will give you notice.

23.1 Governing law. These terms are governed by the laws of Queensland, Australia, and the parties submit to the non-exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Queensland.

23.2 Assignment. You may not assign your rights under these terms without our written consent.

23.3 Severability. If any provision is found to be unenforceable, it is severed and the remaining provisions continue in effect.

23.4 Waiver. A failure to enforce a provision is not a waiver of the right to enforce it later.

23.5 Entire agreement. These terms, together with any written engagement documentation, form the entire agreement between the parties in relation to our services.

Questions about these terms can be directed to us using the details below.