The fairly quiet Fair Work WeekA whole new set of federal laws about industrial relations has slid into being this week with very little fanfare. Anne Junor explains exactly what the changes entail for employees and employers.
Australian Industrial Relations Commission
Will Fast Food award deny youth jobs?
Changes to the Fast Food Industry Award will make it more expensive to hire young workers. Michael Stutchbury claims it’s “madness”.
Industry super funds in AIRC bonanza
Buried amid the Industrial Relations Commission’s awards modernisation program was a curious ruling on superannuation, writes Stephen Bartholomeusz.
WorkChoices v Forward with Fairness: a photo finish
Most observers agree that when the politics is stripped out and policy is analyzed, Forward with Fairness adopts a large percentage of Work Choices, writes Ken Phillips.
The push to weaken director’s liability continues
The push to weaken director’s liability is continuing, with former high-profile director, John Ralph, telling the AFR that he wouldn’t join company boards if he were retiring today. Ralph stated that “it seems a lot more fun to go into private equity where you can just get on with things.”
The Howard Government’s record of political appointments
The propensity to make controversial appointments to positions of authority in public agencies was one of the more contentious habits of the Howard government, writes Rebecca Harrison.
Crikey Policy Comparison Pt 11: Industrial Relations
If you’re looking for a major difference between the parties, this is it. As the government continues to defend its controversial WorkChoices policy, and the Fairness Test that it later introduced, the ALP have made the abolition of AWAs a central tenant of their campaign, with a little help from the highly successful Your Rights At Work. This is an issue with cut through, and there’s a chasm of difference between the Coalition and ALP. And while there may be a certain jitteryness in business circles about the implications of a new Rudd government, the big bad WorkChoices line from the ALP seems to have hooked Howard’s battlers back to their camp. Read on, and mind the gap.
