M69 Professional Scientific and Technical Services

Executives warned to look closely at redundancy clauses

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Original article by Jenny Wiggins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 29-Jan-15

A Supreme Court of New South Wales ruling has overturned a decision by the District Court that ex-UGL Rail Services executive John Janik was owed a redundancy payment worth $A288,000. The appeal judges found that the company was correct in arguing that the replacement for Janik was carrying out the same duties and the role had therefore not been abolished. Legal experts are advising dismissed managers to carefully consider whether to launch such law suits

CORPORATES
UGL LIMITED – ASX UGL, UGL RAIL SERVICES PTY LTD, HOLDING REDLICH LAWYERS AND CONSULTANTS, DISTRICT COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES, SUPREME COURT OF NEW SOUTH WALES

Rate cut likely as spending slows

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Original article by David Rogers
The Australian – Page: 19 : 22-Jan-15

There was a 2.4 per cent increase in the Westpac-Melbourne Institute index of consumer sentiment in January 2015. The index rose from 91.1 in December to 93.2 per cent in seasonally adjusted terms. Meanwhile, the ANZ-Roy Morgan Consumer Confidence Index has increased by 1.4 per cent to 113.6, although the data is not seasonally adjusted. Westpac’s chief economist Bill Evans expects the cash rate to be reduced in both February and March

CORPORATES
WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE. INSTITUTE OF APPLIED ECONOMIC AND SOCIAL RESEARCH, AUSTRALIA AND NEW ZEALAND BANKING GROUP LIMITED – ASX ANZ, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, WORLD BANK, INTERNATIONAL MONETARY FUND, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Budget deficit saps confidence

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Original article by Adam Creighton
The Australian – Page: 19 : 20-Jan-15

Roy Morgan Research’s business confidence index has fallen to its lowest level since August 2011. The index fell to 105.3 in December 2014, compared with 123 in November. Roy Morgan’s Norman Morris says business confidence was adversely affected by the Australian Government’s forecast of a $A40bn Budget deficit for 2014-15. A survey by the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry also shows that there has been a sharp fall in business conditions

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, TD SECURITIES, RESERVE BANK OF AUSTRALIA

Holiday hoarders need a break

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Original article by Jamie Freed
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 3 : 13-Jan-15

Expedia has released a report which shows that many Australian workers do not use their entire annual leave entitlement each year. It found that 11 per cent of Australians failed to take any leave in 2014, while they have an average of five days of unused leave each year. Expedia’s Georg Ruebensal notes that many Australians opt for domestic holidays of about three days’ duration, or overseas destinations that are close to Australia

CORPORATES
EXPEDIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, EXPEDIA INCORPORATED

Nation to burn past coal quota

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Original article by Peter Hannam
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 12 : 9-Jan-15

A study by University College London assesses the limits on carbon emissions needed to ward off dangerous climate change. The research finds that for increases in worldwide temperatures to remain within two degrees Celsius of pre-industrial levels, 82 per cent of global coal and 50 per cent of gas reserves must stay unmined. Julien Vincent of Market Forces says the study suggests that Australia will soon surpass the level of coal output with which a stable climate can cope, it it has not already

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON, ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT, FRIENDS OF THE EARTH, ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, MINERAL COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY

Easy entry for skilled foreigners

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Original article by Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 6 : 7-Jan-15

The Australian Government may relax the visa requirements for skilled overseas workers who are hired on temporary contracts. The reforms would allow companies to recruit foreign workers on a "short-term mobility" visa rather than the existing 457 visa for skilled workers. Migration Solutions MD Mark Glazbrook supports the proposed reforms, but ACTU president Ged Kearney argues that hiring and training Australian workers should be the priority

CORPORATES
MIGRATION SOLUTIONS PTY LTD, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), MASTER BUILDERS AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED

ASX leaders named as being at risk

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Original article by Georgia Wilkins
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 23 : 18-Dec-14

A report from Citibank raises concerns that some Australian-listed companies could be exposed to bribery and corruption scandals. It notes that a number of companies are vulnerable due to their lack of adequate procedures to deal with such issues, while some have a presence in countries that are deemed to have a high risk of corruption. Companies that tender for government contracts could also at risk

CORPORATES
CITIBANK PTY LTD, COCHLEAR LIMITED – ASX COH, WESTPAC BANKING CORPORATION – ASX WBC, NEWCREST MINING LIMITED – ASX NCM, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, RAMSAY HEALTH CARE LIMITED – ASX RHC, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, AUSTRALIAN FEDERAL POLICE

US giant in $2bn bid for Recall

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Original article by Michael Bennet, Damon Kitney
The Australian – Page: 15 : 15-Dec-14

Australian-listed records management services provider Recall has become a takeover target, in an offer worth $A2.2bn by US-based rival Iron Mountain. The bid of about $A7 a share is tipped by experts to be rebuffed by the Recall board as undervaluing the business, and may be sweetened to as much as $A9. Previous speculation about a move by Iron Mountain has lifted Recall’s stock by 27% since September 2014. The cost synergies may amount to as high as $A270m, but institutional shareholders such as Maple-Brown Abbott and Australian Foundation Investment Company may seek a quarter or more of this

CORPORATES
RECALL HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX REC, IRON MOUNTAIN INCORPORATED, MAPLE-BROWN ABBOTT LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN FOUNDATION INVESTMENT COMPANY LIMITED – ASX AFI, ACCESS, CINTAS CORPORATION, BUSINESS RECORDS MANAGEMENT, BRAMBLES LIMITED – ASX BXB, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, NEW YORK STOCK EXCHANGE, CHINA COMMUNICATIONS CONSTRUCTION GROUP LIMITED, LEIGHTON HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX LEI, JOHN HOLLAND PTY LTD, APA GROUP – ASX APA, BG GROUP PLC

Reforms to cut through red tape

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Original article by Andrew White
The Australian – Page: 20 : 11-Dec-14

National Australia Bank’s Angela Mentis has suggested to the Federal Government that it could reduce red tape for small businesses by scrapping business activity statements. This is one of the recommendations that Mentis has made to the Minister for Small Business, Bruce Bilson. She argues that technology solutions could be used to assist small business owners to compile data for the monthly statements

CORPORATES
NATIONAL AUSTRALIA BANK LIMITED – ASX NAB, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIAN GOVERNMENTS, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY

Nine chief’s pay soars to $19.6 million

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Original article by James Thomson, Edmund Tadros
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 : 10-Dec-14

The latest executive salary survey by "The Australian Financial Review" shows that Nine Entertainment Company CEO David Gyngell was Australia’s highest-paid corporate executive in 2014. His total remuneration of $A19.6m included a $A2.5m cash bonus associated with the group’s IPO. Arowana International CEO Kevin Chin was paid $A13.3m in total, followed by News Corporation CEO Robert Thomson with total remuneration of $A13.2m

CORPORATES
NINE ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX NEC, AROWANA INTERNATIONAL LIMITED – ASX AWN, NEWS CORPORATION – ASX NWS, WESFARMERS LIMITED – ASX WES, WESTFIELD CORPORATION – ASX WFD, GUERDON ASSOCIATES PTY LTD, OAKTREE CAPITAL MANAGEMENT LLC, APOLLO GLOBAL MANAGEMENT LLC