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An employer has to convert a casual employee to permanent part-time employment, after a landmark ruling on the Federal Government's new 'employee choice' provisions.

The nature of the employee's work made assessing the employment relationship "complicated", Fair Work Commissioner Stephen Crawford said.

But he ultimately found that at the relevant time, under the meaning set out in section 15A of the Fair Work Act, the employee wasn't a casual.

The decision was the first to determine a dispute about the 'employee choice' pathway to permanent employment, which was introduced as part of the Closing Loopholes amendments. It allows eligible employees to notify their employer when they believe they no longer meet the requirements for casual employment...