UTSSA Student Legal Service

22/12/2021

End of year closure - The Student Legal Service will be closed from 24 December 2021, and reopen on 18 January 2022. We will then operate remotely for 2 weeks, before reopening on campus at UTS on Tuesday, 1 February 2022.
If you have an urgent legal problem while we are closed, please contact Redfern Legal Centre - https://rlc.org.au/ .
Otherwise, please send us an email so that we can help you with your matter after 18 January 2022.
And have a great break, and stay safe and healthy.

Since 1977, Redfern Legal Centre has been working to provide quality legal services to help people that experience disadvantage in the community.

19/05/2021

An interesting court decision concerning food delivery drivers - you may be an employee, not a contractor

Fair Work says the rider was subject to ‘harsh, unjust and unreasonable’ treatment by the company

30/03/2021

https://www.facebook.com/Study.Sydney.Australia/photos/a.157970264252177/3720043731378128/

Your opinion as an international student matters.

Study Australia invites studying in Australia to complete an online survey so we can find out more about your experience and improve student support services and communications.

Take the survey before 6 April: www.surveymonkey.com/r/StudyAusR3

23/01/2020

The UTS SLS is back open now for 2020, providing free legal advice to UTS Students. So if you are a UTS student and have a legal problem come and see us. Open Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday.

21/08/2019

Congratulations to Chrissy Chen on being admitted last week as a lawyer of the Supreme Court of NSW. Fantastic!

21/08/2019

Minimum wage now $19.49/hour
From 1 July 2019 the minimum wage for a permanent employee is now $19.49/hour, and for a casual employee the mimumum is $24.36.
If you think you are being underpaid come and talk to us - we provide a free legal service for UTS students.
For more information on wages see

Information and advice about Australia’s workplace rights and rules.

08/05/2019

Congratulations to Julia Li on being admitted last Friday as a lawyer of the Supreme Court of NSW.

31/01/2019

Some Tips for Renting
BEFORE YOU PAY ANY MONEY - Make sure that you
• Go and See the place in person. Make sure it exists, and it is what you want. DON’T pay money if you haven’t gone to the place. Don’t be rushed into paying. If you miss out on one place, others will come up.
• Work out who else will live there – are you sharing a room? If so, who with? What happens if you don’t like them? How many people in total will live in the house or apartment? Find these things out.
• Work out who you are dealing with – get the full name and home address of your landlord. Ask to see current photographic ID (eg driver’s licence or passport) and take a photo of that with your phone.
• Ask for a written agreement – if they won’t give you this then there might be a problem. If you get an agreement and you are not totally sure what it means, or think it unfair, come and see us for advice before you sign it.
• Work out how long you must stay – make sure you are happy with how long you agree to stay under the agreement. If you try to leave before the end of the agreement then the landlord will try to keep all of your bond.
WHEN YOU MOVE IN –
• Don’t pay more than 2 weeks’ rent in advance.
• Don’t pay more than 4 weeks’ rent as bond – pay less if you can – 2 weeks. And try to pay the bond to the Rental Bond Board, not direct to your landlord.
• Get written receipts for any money you pay. Make sure the receipts have details of the property, who you are paying to, your details, the date, the amount, and what it is for.
• Complete any condition report, and take photos as a record of the condition of the property when you first move in. The more the better. If there are problems, tell the landlord about the problems straight away.
If you want to leave a place, or have problems or questions come see us at the UTS Student Legal Service for free legal advice. Telephone 9514 2484 or email [email protected] for an appointment. We are on level 5 of the UTS Tower Building, 15 Broadway, Ultimo.

31/01/2019

Employment Tips for International Students
• You have rights: International students have the same work rights as anyone else working in Australia. You have a right to be paid no less than the minimum wage, and to have a safe place to work. You also should be paid superannuation, and other benefits.
• Minimum Wage – you should be paid at no less than the minimum wage, which from 1 July 2018 is $18.93/hour, and you might be entitled to be paid more. This is true, even if you agreed to be paid less than the minimum wage.
• It is not illegal to be paid cash – You are not doing anything wrong if you are being paid in cash by your employer. But keep good records of when you are paid, and how much you are paid. If you can, send your employer a text/wechat/whatsapp message to confirm the amounts that you are paid, and when.
• Find out who you work for – make sure that you know or find out the full name and address of the person or company that you are working for. All employers should have an Australian Business Number – an ABN. Try to find this out.
• Keep records: try to keep records of the days and hours that you work, including meal breaks. This will make it far easier to check if you have been paid the right amount, and, if not, to get your employer to pay you properly.
• Cash back schemes are illegal. Your employer cannot ask you to pay any of your wages back to them in cash. This is illegal.
• If I complain will I be sacked? If an employer isn’t paying you the right amount, then you shouldn’t be sacked if you complain – that would be illegal. But if you prefer, you can chase underpayments of wages after you stop working for an employer.
• Worried about visa breaches? Even if you are on a student visa and you have been working more than 40 hours per fortnight, you can complain about not being paid the right amount, and you should not be in trouble with your visa. The Fair Work Ombudsman says “We've come to an agreement with the Department of Home Affairs that a person's temporary visa will not be cancelled if they had an entitlement to work as part of their visa, believe they have been exploited at work, have reported their circumstances to us, and are actively assisting us in an investigation.” see https://www.fairwork.gov.au/find-help-for/visa-holders-and-migrants
• How long will it take to get paid properly? Sometimes we can get you paid properly within a few weeks, but it can take up to 6 months. Talk to us to find out.
If you think you are being underpaid or that in some other way you are not being treated properly at work, then we can help you. Email the UTS Student Legal Service at [email protected] to make an appointment, or call us on
02 9514 2484, or drop in to see us. Our service is totally free and confidential.

Information and advice about Australia’s workplace rights and rules.

31/01/2019

If I am charged by police and they take my phone, or other property, how can I get it back?
While the police can legally seize your property, including your mobile phone, for evidence, you have a right to get your things back if the police do not end up pursing a case against you, or if your matter is finalised. For instance, you should be able to get your property back if you plead guilty and the court has dealt with the matter, or if your property was used in evidence in a case against someone else, and that case has ended – see http://www5.austlii.edu.au/au/legis/nsw/consol_act/leara2002451/s218.html .
To get your property back, you should first contact the officer in charge of your matter and ask for it. Do this within 28 days of the matter being finalised. If the officer refuses to return the property, you should make a request to their superior, but if that fails you can make an application for a court order for the items to be returned.
For more information see http://www.legalaid.nsw.gov.au/publications/factsheets-and-resources/police-powers and https://www.police.nsw.gov.au/crime/are_you_a_victim_of_crime/victims_of_crime/return_of_property

10/12/2018

RENTING TIPS
BEFORE YOU PAY ANY MONEY - Make sure that you
• Go and See the place in person. Make sure it exists, and it is what you want. DON’T pay money if you haven’t gone to the place. Don’t be rushed into paying. If you miss out on one place, others will come up.
• Work out who else will live there – are you sharing a room? If so, who with? What happens if you don’t like them? How many people in total will live in the house or apartment? Find these things out.
• Work out who you are dealing with – get the full name and home address of your landlord. Ask to see current photographic ID (eg driver’s licence or passport) and take a photo of that with your phone.
• Ask for a written agreement – if they won’t give you this then there might be a problem. If you get an agreement and you are not totally sure what it means, or think it unfair, come and see us for advice before you sign it.
• Work out how long you must stay – make sure you are happy with how long you agree to stay under the agreement. If you try to leave before the end of the agreement then the landlord will try to keep all of your bond.
WHEN YOU MOVE IN –
• Don’t pay more than 2 weeks’ rent in advance.
• Don’t pay more than 4 weeks’ rent as bond – pay less if you can – 2 weeks.
• Get written receipts for any money you pay. Make sure the receipts have details of the property, who you are paying to, your details, the date, the amount, and what it is for.
• Complete any condition report, and take photos as a record of the condition of the property when you first move in. The more the better. If there are problems, tell the landlord about the problems straight away.