O75 Public Administration

Business push to cut Sunday penalty rates

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 23-Dec-15

Business leaders want Fair Work Commission (FWC) president Iain Ross to consider the Productivity Commission’s recommendations on penalty rates in his review of the system. However, labour unions will fight the proposal to bring Sunday penalty rates in some industries in line with those for working on Saturday. The Federal Government’s 2016 election platform will include some of the Productivity Commission’s recommendations, although it is not expected to endorse a proposal to split the functions of the FWC.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, UNITED VOICE, AUSTRALIA. ROYAL COMMISSION INTO TRADE UNION GOVERNANCE AND CORRUPTION, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION

Business blasts IR blueprint

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 22-Dec-15

Business leaders have criticised the Productivity Commission for failing to deal with the complexity of Australia’s workplace relations system. Scott Barklamb, executive director of the Australian Mines & Metals Association, said the commission was too cautious in its recommendations. Kate Carnell, the CEO of the Australian Chamber of Commerce & Industry, described the report as "an opportunity lost". The commission has proposed reducing Sunday penalty rates in certain industries to the level of Saturday rates. Employment Minister Michaelia Cash said the issue will be determined by a Fair Work Commission review.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Innovation tax breaks could be rorted

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ben Potter
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 21-Dec-15

The Treasury has downplayed concerns that the Australian Government’s proposed tax incentives for investing in business start-ups could be subject to abuse. Grattan Institute CEO John Daley recently warned that promoters of tax schemes will seek to capitalise on the measures in the Government’s innovation statement, but a Treasury spokesman says Australia boasts strong anti-avoidance laws.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, GRATTAN INSTITUTE, MELBOURNE ECONOMIC FORUM, AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY, INNOVATION AND SCIENCE AUSTRALIA, UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE, VICTORIA UNIVERSITY

Exploited 7-Eleven workers will not lose their visas

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Max Mason
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 15 : 21-Dec-15

The Australian Government has advised that foreign workers who were underpaid by 7-Eleven will not have their visas cancelled if they assist with investigations into the scandal. Giri Sivaraman of law firm Maurice Blackburn says this is likely to encourage more exploited workers to come forward. The Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association claims that wage exploitation is still occurring.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF IMMIGRATION AND BORDER PROTECTION, 7-ELEVEN STORES PTY LTD, MAURICE BLACKBURN PTY LTD, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, AUSTRALIAN BROADCASTING CORPORATION

Cash steps in to quell union penalty rate campaign

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 21-Dec-15

The Productivity Commission is scheduled to release its final report on the industrial relations system on 21 December 2015. Its recommendations are tipped to include reducing Sunday penalty rates for some industries to the same level that apply for working on Saturday. However, Employment Minister Michaelia Cash has stressed that the Fair Work Commission will be solely responsible for determining penalty rates.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, UNITED VOICE, ACTU

Roy Morgan illegally locked out of premises at 401 Collins St by Impact Investment Group

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Morgan Poll Update – Page: Online : 21-Dec-15

Following a failed attempt to be heard at the Supreme Court on Friday, Impact Investment Group illegally and without notice, de-activated all security passes for 401 Collins St, Melbourne, changed the locks and put security guards on the building. There is a dispute between Roy Morgan Research and Impact Investment Group over a purchase/leaseback contract for 401 Collins St. The dispute revolves around details of a replacement lift – which, amongst other things will block access to the Collins St entrance to the building for at least six months. As IIG have refused to negotiate, mediate, discuss, or in any way, resolve the issues of the dispute, Roy Morgan Research has stopped paying rent. This matter is before the Supreme Court at IIG’s initiation. Roy Morgan Research has a $A2.5 million bank guarantee (bond) in place and a personal guarantee for rent from executive chairman Gary Morgan. The action taken by IIG in locking Roy Morgan Research out of its premises is not only illegal, it is vexatious and the information provided to the media is mischievous, wrong in fact and defamatory with potentially large damages. Gary Morgan expresses concern about the stress this causes staff so close to Christmas.

CORPORATES
ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, IMPACT INVESTMENT GROUP PTY LTD, SUPREME COURT OF VICTORIA

Good, bad, ugly: ATO reveals all

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Neil Chenoweth, Primrose Riordan, Edmund Tadros, Joanna Mather
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 7 : 18-Dec-15

Some 579 of the 1,539 public companies whose tax details were released on 17 December 2015 did not pay any tax in Australia in fiscal 2014. The Australian Taxation Office figures cover 554 companies based in Australia and 985 foreign-owned companies, and show that Hewlett-Packard, Toshiba, Acer and Citrix Systems are among the companies that paid no tax. BHP Billiton had the highest corporate tax bill, at $A4.1bn.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, HEWLETT-PACKARD AUSTRALIA LIMITED, TOSHIBA (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ACER INCORPORATED, CITRIX SYSTEMS INCORPORATED, RIO TINTO LIMITED – ASX RIO, APPLE INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, CAPGEMINI AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NOKIA AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, ALCATEL-LUCENT AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, CSL LIMITED – ASX CSL, MITSUI AND COMPANY LIMITED, ITOCHU CORPORATION, NIPPON STEEL CORPORATION, SUMITOMO CORPORATION, ESSO AUSTRALIA RESOURCES LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Top corporations paid zero tax

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Nassim Khadem
The Age – Page: 10 : 17-Dec-15

The Australian Taxation Office (ATO) will release the tax details of 1,539 companies on 17 December 2015. The document will show that 38 per cent of the companies did not pay any tax in 2013-14. ATO Acting Second Commissioner Jeremy Hirschhorn said that these companies were not necessarily engaged in tax avoidance.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN TAXATION OFFICE, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Morrison flags taking IR reform as election issue

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 17-Dec-15

Changes must be made to the industrial relations (IR) regime to ensure economic growth in Australia. Treasurer Scott Morrison signalled on 16 December 2015 that workplace relations reform could become an election issue. The end of the mining boom makes it necessary to make adjustments in both tax and IR policies.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY, AUSTRALIA. PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, MOODY’S ANALYTICS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, FITCH AUSTRALIA PTY LTD

L-NP increases lead over ALP – now 57.5% cf. 42.5%; biggest lead for Coalition since being elected in 2013

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Roy Morgan Research
Morgan Poll Update – Page: Online : 15-Dec-15

A multi-mode Morgan Poll on Federal voting intention has found that support for Australia’s ruling Liberal-National Coalition on a two-party preferred basis has risen by 1.5 per cent to 57.5 per cent. The poll, which was carried out on the weekends of 5-6 and 12-13 December 2015, also shows that the Coalition’s primary vote has risen by 1.5 per cent to 48 per cent, but the Roy Morgan Government Confidence Rating has fallen by seven points to 115. Roy Morgan Research executive chairman Gary Morgan says the scale of the Budget blowout in the Mid-Year Economic and Fiscal Outlook shows that the Turnbull Government faces a challenging 12 months as it attempts to win a mandate in its own right at the 2016 Federal Election whilst also steering the Australian economy through a slowing economy caused by the end of the long-running commodities boom.

CORPORATES
MORGAN POLL, ROY MORGAN RESEARCH LIMITED, LIBERAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, NATIONAL PARTY OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, KATTER’S AUSTRALIAN PARTY, PALMER UNITED PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE PRIME MINISTER AND CABINET, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY