Times Are a-Changin': This Sunday Plastic Bags Are Out and Penalty Rate Cuts Are In

There is a lot happening on 1 July.

This Sunday is the first of July. But, unlike the start of most other months, this signifies something sort-of special: the end of the financial year.

Aside from the multitude of sales that are probably cluttering your online shopping lives, it's also a time for the government to start many of the changes that have been passed through Parliament in the past year, and a lot of them will affect you.

So, without further ado, here are some of the most important changes that will inevitably affect young people: the good, the bad and the downright inconvenient.

Your Sunday penalty rates will be cut.

One change that has been in the works for some time is the war on penalty rates, which will come into effect this Sunday.

If you work part-time or full-time in hospitality, you'll see a 10 per cent decrease for your Sunday rates. For those full-time and part-time workers in retail and pharmacy, you'll have a 15 per cent drop while casual workers will face a 5 per cent and 10 per cent drop, respectively. Here's everything you need to know.

These are tough times.

The minimum wage will increase... a bit.

The Fair Work Commission (same guys that lowered penalty rates) have agreed to raise the minimum wage in Australia.

It now sits at $18.93 per hour or $719.20 per week (based on a 38-hour week). That means an extra $24.30 a week.

Queensland and Western Australia say goodbye to plastic bags.

Queensland and Western Australia decided to ban plastic bags a little while ago thanks to some savvy and persuasive school children, and on Sunday, those bans become a reality.

Woolworths and Coles are also set to stop offering plastic bags from 1 July, but Woolworths has recently delayed that total ban for 10 days due to customer backlash.

American Amazon won't ship to Australia.

Because of changes to how GST is applied to online goods, Amazon US has decided to ban Australians from shopping its (superior) U.S. store from 1 July. 

This is because GST (Goods and Services Tax) will be applied to all online goods sold to Australian consumers. You can still shop Amazon's Aussie store. Yay?

You'll get more tax back in the new financial year.

To round off with some positive-ish news, you will get more money back next financial year after recent changes to tax were made.

If you're earning less than $37,000 a year, you'll get $200 more back, and if you're earning under $90,000, you'll get up to $530 more back.

The changes are a bit of a mixed bag. Make sure you're prepared for the new world after Sunday.

Photo: NBC