s84: s 84 Return to work guarantee after unpaid parental leave
When unpaid parental leave ends, the employee returns to the pre-parental leave position (the position held before any safe job transfer or reduced hours due to pregnancy) or, if that position no longer exists, an available position for which the employee is qualified and suited nearest in status and pay to it.
Our statement of the clause of Australia Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth), held and verified: cite it as s84. The instrument verbatim is not quoted here; the held framework carries the reading.
The evidence this duty asks you to hold
Return to work records confirming the position, pay and status on return; Where the position was abolished, the assessment of the nearest available position in status and pay; Return planning communications
What usually goes missing
Employee returned to a lower-status role while the original continues; Position abolished during leave without considering suitable alternatives; Pay on return below pre-leave pay
Where this lands in an audit
In Equal Pay Auditor this control informs the same-work screen, the category figures and the remediation steps, which carry their article citations on the result.