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Part II Freedom of Information Act - information statement

Workforce Inspectorate Victoria’s information statement in accordance with Part II of the Freedom of Information Act 1982.

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In accordance with Part II of the Freedom of Information Act 1982 (FOI Act), this information statement contains details about Workforce Inspectorate Victoria on the following matters:

  1. organisation and functions
  2. categories of documents
  3. freedom of information (FOI) arrangements
  4. publications
  5. rules, policies and procedures
  6. report literature.

This statement provides an overview of our functions, a snapshot of the types of information and documents we hold, and instructions on how to access the information, locate publicly available documents and make a request under the FOI Act.

We make information publicly available on our website at wiv.vic.gov.au.

We make as much information as possible publicly available to reduce the need for the public to request access to documents under the FOI Act.

For more information about FOI in Victoria, please visit the Office of the Victorian Information Commissioner’s (OVIC) website.

Statement 1 - Organisation and functions

Organisation

We are an independent statutory authority initially established under the Wage Theft Act 2020. When the Wage Theft Amendment Act 2025 was passed, we became the Workforce Inspectorate Victoria. Prior to our establishment in 2021 as an authority, we were part of Industrial Relations Victoria in the Department of Premier and Cabinet.

Our vision

The Workforce Inspectorate helps Victorians work better. Through our work, we aim to even the playing field for businesses and ensure workers are treated fairly. We also hold to account those who break the law, using our powers in a fair and proportionate matter. We believe that nobody should get ahead, in the workplace or in business, by mistreating or short-changing others.

Our areas of focus are:

Commissioner

Robert Hortle PSM was appointed the inaugural Commissioner of the Wage Inspectorate on 17 June 2021.

The Commissioner is the public service body head of the Workforce Inspectorate and holds office for a term not exceeding 5 years. The Commissioner is responsible for undertaking the strategic leadership of the Workforce Inspectorate and has all the duties, functions and powers of the Workforce Inspectorate as provided under the Workforce Inspectorate Act 2020.

The Commissioner also has other duties, functions and powers conferred on the Commissioner under other Acts, including the Child Employment Act 2003, Child Wellbeing and Safety Act 2005, Long Service Leave Act 2018 and Owner Drivers and Forestry Contractors Act 2005 (the Acts).

Staff

We employ staff under Part 3 of the Public Administration Act 2004 to administer the Acts.

The Commissioner is supported by a Deputy Commissioner, a Chief Operating Officer and Assistant Directors who oversees several operational and administrative teams.

Functions

We undertake education, compliance and enforcement functions in relation to child employment, child safe standards, long service leave and owner-drivers as set out in the following legislation (the Acts):

We also provide a referral service for people who have knowledge of or have experienced unacceptable behaviours on a public construction site in Victoria.

Our functions, include but are not limited to:

In carrying out a function or power under the Acts, or any other Act, we adhere to the guiding principles to:

You can read more about the Workforce Inspectorate at wiv.vic.gov.au.

You can also review the following pages which provide further information about our functions:

Statement 2 - Categories of documents

In the course of our work and functions, we create, collect and store a broad range of electronic and hard copy documents.

The types of documents we have in our possession include:

Documents we hold are generally organised under the following categories:

Statement 3 - Freedom of information (FOI) arrangements

Under the FOI Act, all members of the public have the right to access documents held and produced by Victorian Government departments and agencies, subject to certain exceptions and exemptions.

The object of the FOI Act is to extend as far as possible the right of the community to access information in the possession of the Government and other bodies constituted under the law of Victoria.

For more information on our freedom of information arrangements, visit Make a Freedom of Information Request.

Statement 4 - Publications

As part of our work, we produce a number of publications which can be accessed and downloaded from wiv.vic.gov.au,including:

Statement 5 - Rules, policies and procedures

There are rules, policies and procedures in place to govern our daily operations and in support of our administrative functions, such as our:

If you are searching for a specific topic, you can search our website or contact us.

Statement 6 - Report literature

The Workforce Inspectorates publishes a Gifts, Benefits and Hospitality Register. We also have a publicly available register of child employment licence holders on our website.

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Updated 22 December 2025

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