Victoria's work-from-home laws delayed to 2027 — here's what's going on

Victoria's new Premier Ben Carroll has pushed back debate on the bill that would give workers a legislated right to work from home, delaying the start date to July 2027 — roughly 10 months later than originally planned and more than six months after the November state election. (The Guardian; news.com.au)

Former Premier Jacinta Allan had promised the right would be in place by 1 September. Allan first announced the policy in 2025: a legally guaranteed right to work from home two days a week for employees who can reasonably do so. The bill, as drafted, provides that right to two days a week, scaled proportionally for employees working fewer than 38 hours. (The Guardian; Victorian Hansard)

Carroll's delay followed a last-minute media campaign by business lobby groups warning that unemployment would rise and companies might move interstate. Tim Piper of the Australian Industry Group told reporters during the campaign that "working from home could also be working from the Philippines." (The Guardian)

The Premier said he personally spoke to Piper and Sally Curtain, chief executive of the Victorian Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to confirm the delay. Carroll described it as part of his "reset with the business community" and a signal that Victoria was "open for business." (The Guardian)

The Coalition, for its part, is not threatening to block the bill. Shadow attorney general James Newbury said the Coalition would not stand in the way of the legislation and supports people's right to work from home, subject to amendments. (The Guardian)

The delayed start date has some precedent in the bill's own structure. Government announcements from March and June 2026 already flagged a staggered start: workplaces with fewer than 15 employees were always slated for a later commencement of 1 July 2027, to give small businesses time to get HR policies in place. What Carroll has now done is shift the general start date to match that same timeline. (Victorian Government; Victorian Government)

The political calculation here is fairly plain. Pushing the laws past the November election means the government can tell business groups it has heard their concerns without actually having to test the policy at the ballot box. It also means voters who liked the sound of a guaranteed two days at home will have to take it on faith. The opposition has no reason to complain; the Coalition gets the delay business wanted without having to wear the blame for it.

What's harder to assess is whether the business lobby's claims about unemployment and interstate relocation hold water. No modelling has been cited publicly. Piper's line about the Philippines gestures at a genuine policy question — if you legislate a right to work from home in Victoria, where exactly is "home" — but it's a rhetorical flourish, not a submissions document. The substantive issue the bill addresses is the gap between the existing Fair Work framework, which gives employees a right to request flexible arrangements, and a positive right that puts the onus on the employer to justify refusing.

Think of it this way: under current law, the worker has to ask and the employer can say no. Under the new bill, the employer would have to come up with a good reason to say no. The delay gives employers roughly 11 more months before that shift happens. Whether they use that time to prepare, or simply to keep lobbying, is the open question.