Being your own boss can be exciting, challenging and sometimes stressful.

Long hours, unpredictable cash flow, significant changes in your industry and having responsibility for employees can leave you feeling mentally exhausted, stressed, anxious or depressed.

This in turn could affect your ability to run your business, and have an impact on your relationships with family, friends, employees, suppliers and customers.

Warning signs

Watch out for warning signs that stress and anxiety are starting to build up. You may need to pay more attention to your mental health or seek some outside support. You may not notice the warning signs yourself, so listen to comments and feedback from people close to you.

There is no shame in asking for help; one in five Australians will experience a mental health condition during their lifetime. Having good mental health is also good for the health of your business.

You may be experiencing stress, anxiety or depression if you are:

• finding it hard to concentrate or make decisions
• feeling overwhelmed and unable to solve problems 
• regularly feeling irritable, sensitive, tense or close to tears
• constantly thinking of work, even during personal time
• finding reasons not to get out of bed or go to work
• avoiding essential day-to-day tasks
• spending less time with family or friends and generally avoiding social situations
• drinking excessive alcohol or smoking more

Stress

Stress can also appear in ways you may not expect. Watch out for the following physical symptoms, which may indicate that you are under stress:

• chest pain or pounding heart, high blood pressure
• finding it difficult to sleep or feeling constantly tired
• reduced interest in sex
• diarrhoea or constipation, nausea
• weakened immune system, getting colds more often
• muscle tension, aches and pains, headaches
• fast, shallow breathing, sweating excessively
• loss or change of appetite

Anxiety and depression

Anxiety and depression are conditions that can only be diagnosed by a medical professional. Anxiety is more than just feeling stressed or worried. It’s normal to feel anxious if you are under pressure, however if these feelings happen for no obvious reason or continue after the stressful event has passed, it may be a sign of something more serious. Effective treatments for anxiety and depression are available, the sooner you seek help the quicker you’ll be on the road to recovery.

Top 10 tips for maintaining good mental health

Running your own business can leave you with little spare time, but taking care of your mental health is an investment in you and your business. Start working through this list:

1. Make regular exercise, sleep and healthy eating your top priorities.
2. Take up an activity you really enjoy – a new hobby or get involved in your community. Visit the Act-Belong-Commit website for lots of great ideas.
3. Practice relaxation techniques such as breathing exercises you can do anywhere at any time.
4. Focus on what you can control, not what you can’t.
5. Put business systems and process in place that will allow you to take regular short breaks and holidays. 
6. Decide which tasks you can outsource, don’t try to do everything yourself.
7. Don’t regularly take work home with you.
8. Set a time every day when your phone and emails are turned off.
9. Join a local business group or industry association to build a support group of peers to share and discuss your daily challenges.
10. Sometimes it’s OK to just say “no”.

Good mental health is a state of well-being in which every individual realises his or her own potential, can cope with the normal stress of life, and can work productively and fruitfully, is able to make a contribution to his or her community. (Source: World Health Organisation)

Mental health education

The Federally-funded Ahead for Business free Business Wellbeing aims to assist small business owners and your employees to develop knowledge, skills and practices around mental health and wellbeing in the workplace. This training encourages users to reflect on and learn strategies to support their own mental health and wellbeing, and support others in the workplace.

Expanded in October 2022, the online training includes a training pathway tailored for small business employees, along with new content for small business owners, to support creating a mentally healthy workplace.

For more information visit the Business Wellbeing training portal.

Seek extra support

If you, or someone you know, is struggling with anxiety, stress or depression, there are many organisations that can provide information and support.

If you need to talk to someone now call:

• Beyond Blue - 1300 22 4636
• Lifeline – 13 11 14
• Suicide Call Back Service – 1300 659 467

These services are free and available 24 hours a day.

There are various reasons why employment ends, for example redundancy, resignation, termination or dismissal.

Your obligations as an employer will depend whether you are under the state or national industrial relations system.

Notice periods

You must give notice to an employee when ending their employment. The length of notice will depend on their:

• length of service;
• type of employment;
• award, agreement or employment contract; and
• age

You can either let the employee work their notice period or you can pay them out (known as pay in lieu of notice).

If you decide to pay out the employee, they must be paid the same amount as if they had worked to the end of the notice period.

Employee entitlements

You must pay an employee all their entitlements when employment ends. These may include:

• outstanding wages
• accumulated annual leave
• accrued or pro rata long service leave
• redundancy pay

Unfair dismissal

You must have appropriate policies and procedures in place to manage employee performance. Terminating or dismissing an underperforming employee must be done in a manner that is fair, reasonable, and just.

More information

• If you are under the state system, information about your obligations and unfair dismissal is available from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
• If you are under the national system, information about your obligations and unfair dismissal is available from the Fair Work Ombudsman.

Learning how to identify the roles you need, hire employees, manage staff, develop their skills and resolve disputes can help your business grow.

The recruitment process

There are some basic steps in recruiting the right people for your business:

• defining the job;
• creating a job description and selection criteria;
• determining how people will apply and be assessed against the selection criteria;
• advertising the vacancy;
• short listing and interviewing applicants; and
• appointing the right person.

New employees will also benefit from an induction; to introduce them to your business processes and policies, working environment and other staff. A good induction process can reduce staff turnover and increase productivity as employees will know what is expected of them.

The free employment contract tool on the Business.gov.au website can help you build an employment contract, which aligns with the Fair Work system, and is tailored to your business needs.

Managing staff performance

Getting the most from your staff requires you to actively manage their performance. This could be recognising those that are performing well and counselling those who are not.

Managing performance can help you check if your employees have the right skills and attitude, or identify areas for further training and development.

If an employee is underperforming, it is a good practice to:

• provide them with a letter that highlights the performance issue and how you expect it to be rectified;
• provide them with sufficient time to improve their performance or conduct;
• offer further training or an opportunity to improve their skills; and
• advise them of possible consequences if they don’t reach the required performance level

More information

• For general information and templates regarding recruitment, induction and managing performance visit Jobs & Skills WA.
• If you are under the state system, information on employing staff and managing their performance is available from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
• If you are under the national system, information is available to help you manage staff performance.
• The Fair Work Ombudsman’s Small Business Showcase has free information and templates that you can use to guide you through about the process of hiring people, managing performance or having difficult conversations with staff.

Employing staff means meeting a number of legal obligations.

Before employing staff, you need understand the following areas.

Determine which industrial relations system you belong to

In Western Australia, businesses may belong to either the state industrial relations system or the national system. Your obligations will differ depending on which system applies to your business

Learn more about the industrial relations systems and how to determine which system applies to your business.

Equal opportunity laws

When recruiting staff it is unlawful to discriminate based on gender, age, marital status, religion, race, impairment, pregnancy, family status etc. Find out more about your obligations from the Equal Opportunity Commission.

Pay and employment conditions

You can avoid costly mistakes by understanding the required pay and employment conditions. If you are in the state system, contact Wageline for more information. If you are in the national system, contact the Fair Work Ombudsman.

Tax and superannuation

You will be required to report employee earnings to the Australian Taxation Office (ATO); collect pay as you go withholding (PAYG), report fringe benefit tax (FBT) and contribute to employee superannuation funds. You may also be required to pay payroll tax.

The ATO has information regarding PAYG, FBT and superannuation payments and short videos about your employer obligations.

The Department of Finance can provide information about payroll tax.

A data and payment standard called SuperStream has been introduced by the ATO. All businesses must be compliant with SuperStream. The clearing house can assist you.

Keeping employment records

These could include timesheets, payslips and pay summaries, tax file declarations, and superannuation payments.

Time and wages records must be kept for seven years.

If you are in the state system, information and templates are available from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety. If you are in the national system, information and templates are available from the Fair Work Ombudsman.

Leave entitlements

In addition to annual or sick leave you also need to understand your obligations regarding staff long service leave and parental leave.

More information is available from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety (State system) or the Fair Work Ombudsman (national system).

You may also need to make payments to eligible staff under the Commonwealth Paid Parental Leave Scheme.

Ensuring a safe workplace

You are legally obliged to ensure a safe workplace and look after the health and safety of your employees and customers. Penalties can apply if you do not meet your Work Health and Safety (WHS) obligations.

WorkSafe WA is responsible for overseeing workplace safety in Western Australia. To understand your WHS obligations and download templates to use within your business see WorkSafe WA.

Ensure that you have workers’ compensation insurance

You are legally required to have workers’ compensation insurance for your staff, including contractors and any family members who work in your business. This insurance is mandatory if you employ people.

To understand more about your obligations visit the WorkCover WA website.

Download and read the employer publications produced by WorkCover WA.

Injury management

You are legally obliged to have a documented injury management system that outlines the steps to be followed if an injury occurs in your workplace. Penalties can apply if you fail to meet this obligation.

WorkCover WA has information and templates to help you to create an injury management system.

There are a number of ways you can employ staff and it’s important that you understand the correct wage and leave entitlements for each arrangement. 

Full-time and part-time employees

Full-time employees work on a regular basis for an average of 38 hours per week. An employee’s actual hours of work are agreed between the employer and the employee, and/ or are set by an award or registered agreement.

Full-time employees are entitled to the following leave:

• annual, personal, sick, and carers;
• bereavement or compassionate;
• parental; and
• long service

They are also entitled to public holiday pay if the holiday falls on a day they would usually work.

Part-time employees usually work less than 38 hours per week and generally have regular hours. They receive the same wages and conditions as full-time employees on a proportionate or pro-rata basis, according to the hours they work.

Casual employees

Casual employees are engaged on an irregular basis according to business demands and have:

• no expectation of ongoing work;
• no obligation to accept offers of work;
• a loading paid on top of their hourly rate of pay;
• no sick or annual leave pay; and
• no obligation to provide notice of ending their employment, unless this is a requirement of an award, employment contract or registered agreement.

In some circumstances, casual employees may be eligible for long service leave and parental leave after being employed for 12 months.

Fixed term and contract employees

You can employ someone on a fixed term or contract basis for an agreed length of time or to perform a specific task; to work on a particular project or to replace an employee on leave, for example.

Fixed term employees can work full or part-time and are entitled to the same leave entitlements as permanent staff but on a pro-rata basis, depending on the length of employment.

Negotiate the length of employment before the employee starts working and include this in a written agreement.

Apprentices and trainees

Apprentices and trainees may be suitable for your business. They are working towards a nationally recognised qualification and must be formally registered, usually through a contract between a registered training provider, the employee and you.

You must pay apprentices and trainees according to their award or registered agreement.

For more information contact your local Apprenticeship Network provider.

Commission and piece rate employees

You can pay piece rates or commission payments to employees in certain circumstances. This means that you pay them based on the results they achieve instead an hourly or weekly pay rate. You may employ people in this arrangement if:

• their award or agreement allows for it; or
• they are award and agreement free.

Requirements vary for this arrangement depending on which industrial relations system you belong to. It is advisable to seek assistance from Wageline or the Fair Work Ombudsman before entering into this arrangement.

Migrant and overseas workers

If you’re unable to find employees locally, you could consider hiring migrant or overseas based workers. When hiring an overseas worker, the available options are:

• employing a visa holder who is already in Australia and has permission to work, such as a working holiday visa holder or an international student.
• sponsoring a skilled worker who lives overseas or is temporarily in Australia with a work visa.

Migrant workers have the same workplace rights as Australian workers, including the same award and superannuation payments.

Visit the Department of Home Affairs website to find out how to hire a visa holder already in Australia and how to sponsor an overseas worker.

More information

• Build an employment contract which aligns to the Fair Work system and is tailored to your business needs by using the free employment contract tool on the Business.gov.au website
• Visit the Fair Work Ombudsman’s Small Business Showcase for more information on your obligations as an employer.
• Learn more about attracting and retaining employees

Western Australia has two industrial relations systems: state and national.

The system that applies to you is determined by how your business was set up.

Generally, the national system applies to incorporated business – those with ‘Pty Ltd’ or ‘Ltd’ in their name, while the state system applies to sole traders, unincorporated partnerships and some trusts.

There is some overlap between the state and national systems; for example termination notice and parental leave is covered by the national, while employers covered by the national system must abide by state laws in relation to long service leave and when children can work.

If your business belongs under the national system, the Fair Work Ombudsman can provide you with assistance and information to meet your employer obligations. In the state system, you can contact Wageline for assistance.

If you are still not sure which system you belong in, contact Wageline for assistance.

More information

• If you are under the state system, further information can be obtained from the Department of Energy, Mines, Industry Regulation and Safety.
• If you are under the national system, more information can be obtained from the Fair Work Ombudsman. This information is available in a number of languages.

Insurance for your business is important to cover you for unexpected events.

Without the appropriate insurance you may be unable to trade or have large out of pocket expenses, which could result in you having to close your business.

In Western Australia, it is compulsory to have:

• workers’ compensation insurance if you employ people in your business
• motor vehicle third party personal insurance, which is included in the cost of your motor vehicle licence.

You can tailor non-compulsory insurance options according to the risks associated with your business activities.

Insurance cover can be arranged through an:

• insurance company
• agent acting on behalf of an insurance company
• insurance broker.

The Need a Broker website can help you find a broker near you.

Insurance can be divided into protection for three main categories:

• assets and revenue insurance
• liability insurance
• personal and workers insurance.

Assets and revenue insurance

This insurance category covers the loss, damage or theft of your business assets or revenue. Some typical cover types include:

• building and contents
• cyber liability insurance
• glass breakage
• motor vehicle
• fire and other damage
• equipment breakdown
• goods in transit
• fraud and dishonesty
• money
• theft
• business interruption.

Liability insurance

You may be responsible for damages or injuries to another person or property caused by your business activities. You can get liability insurance to minimise the impact to your business. Some typical cover includes:

• public liability
• professional indemnity
• products liability.

Personal and workers insurance

It is important to ensure you have insurance to cover the costs of an unexpected illness, injury or accident including:

• workers’ compensation insurance – this is mandatory when employing staff
• personal accident, illness and life insurance
• income protection insurance.

Other considerations

In regards to insurance policies it is advisable to:

• Shop around to compare prices and features offered by different policies.
• Consider the excess amount payable.
• Update your cover if your circumstances change.
• Review your insurance needs annually and prior to renewal.
• Obtain a cover note if you need to trade before the policy is issued.
• Make sure that your policy includes any mandatory insurance relevant to your business.

Have you ever thought about how much of your business information is stored on a smart phone, computer or online? Or what would happen if you lost access to that information or it became compromised?

When you consider the volume of vital business information that gets stored electronically, the need for good cybersecurity practices is a necessity for all small business owners and their staff.

It is thought that nearly 90 per cent of all cyber breaches are caused by a mistake by someone working in the business.

Here are some practical steps to take to help protect your business.

Use strong passwords

Do you re-use the same password across lots of platforms, have kept the same password for a long time, or include the names of pets of children? If you have answered yes to any of these, your password may not be very secure.

The longer and more complex your passwords are the better. A good start is to have a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. If you find these hard to remember, try a passphrase – a combination of three of four random words that, when combined, provide a longer and harder to guess password (for example: PurpleDoorBananaFloor).

When it comes to your computers, networks (such as your Wi-Fi) and mobile devices, ensure that you have strong passwords that are regularly changed. In particular, if any devices come with default passwords (for example: your modem may have a default password to connect to Wi-Fi) you should change this password as soon as possible. You can check if any of your passwords have been compromised by a data breach on the website Have I Been Pwned.

If you employ staff, you may also want to consider providing access to systems and passwords on a ‘need to know’ basis.

Enable two-factor authentication

Two-factor authentication provides an extra layer of security to your online accounts (such as your email, social media or internet banking) and makes it harder for someone to gain access, as they will need more than your user name and password.

It usually requires you to take an extra step to access online accounts, such as entering a personal identification number (PIN), responding to a notification on your smartphone or using fingerprint or facial recognition.

Most online platforms will allow you to enable two-factor authentication under their security and login settings.

Secure your devices and networks

There are a few practical things you can to do keep your devices and network secure, such as:

• Having up-to-date security software installed and running regular anti-virus scans.
• Avoiding the use of storage devices, like USBs or hard drives, that have come from unfamiliar sources (unless you can run an anti-virus scan on them first).
• Ensuring all portable devices, such as smart phones and tablets, can only be unlocked by PIN.
• Limiting the use of public Wi-Fi networks which may be unsecure or vulnerable. In particular, you should never use public Wi-Fi to make online payments and/or access financial records.

Regularly back-up your data

Having one back-up is a good start, but ideally, you should also have a back-up of your back-up too. Don’t worry, this isn’t as hard as it seems. Online and cloud storage are a popular back-up option, but unfortunately can also be compromised. Ideally, you should not only keep an online back-up of your data, but also have a physical storage device, like an external hard drive, that you regularly back-up your files to.

Read the Australian Cyber Security Centre's Small Business Cloud Security Guides to find out  more.

Update your operating systems

One of the most effective ways to protect your business is to ensure that all your systems and devices are regularly updated, so that weaknesses in the operating system can’t be exploited. It’s a good idea to switch on automatic updates so this important job doesn’t slip your mind.

If your device is no longer supported with security updates because it is too old, it may be time to consider investing in a new device.

Educate your employees

If you employ staff, take the time to talk to them about the importance of cybersecurity and protecting any information relating to your business that they may store on computers or mobile devices. Explaining what you deem to be an acceptable use of business information and devices will ensure they have a clear understanding of your expectations.

You can also consider creating a cybersecurity policy for your workplace that sets our your expectations of staff and how you will handle sensitive data.

Be aware of the latest threats

Major cybersecurity threats are regularly reported in the media, so keeping up-to-date with the news can give you a heads up on the latest threats and attacks so you can stay one step ahead.

Make use of free resources

A range of resources is available to help you protect your business from cyber threats.

• The Have you been hacked? tool from the Australian Cyber Security Centre can walk you through a series of scenarios to determine if you have been hacked and provides practical steps to follow to manage the situation.
• Sign up to the ACSC’s email alert service to provide you with information on the latest online threats and what you can do to keep them at bay.
• Download the ACCC's Little Book of Scams to learn more about common scams and how to protect your business.
• Learn to spot and report scams including email compromise scams and protect your business from scammers.
• If you have been the victim of a scam, ScamWatch explains the steps to follow to limit the damage and protect your business from further loss.
• CyberWest has published useful articles about cyber security and has recently released its WA Cyber Capability Directory that lists local providers who can assist you on your cyber resilience journey.
• The CyberWardens Resources Hub contains a range of handy information, guides, resources and case studies to help you manage cyber threats.

*Source: ACSC Annual Cyber Threat Report, July 2023 to June 2024.