POLITICAL PARTIES – AUSTRALIA – PLATFORMS

Labor plan to criminalise wage theft may backfire

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 5 : 3-Jan-19

University of Melbourne researchers Melissa Kennedy and John Howe have questioned the constitutional validity of Labor’s proposal for state laws aimed at addressing wage exploitation. They say the proposed laws in New South Wales and Victoria could conflict with federal laws such as the Fair Work Act, raising the possibility of a constitutional challenge. They have also raised concerns that criminalising wage theft could undermine the Fair Work Ombudsman’s ability to recover workers’ entitlements.

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY OF MELBOURNE, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK OMBUDSMAN

Shorten policy a risk to free trade

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Original article by Geoff Connolly
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 3-Jan-19

Labor’s national conference in December supported changes to the party’s policy platform with regard to free-trade agreements, including bans on deals that waive ­labour-market testing requirements or include Investor State Dispute Settlement provisions. However, Trade Minister Simon Birmingham says Labor’s policy would put Australia’s future free-trade deals at risk and undermine the ability of local companies to export their products and services. Meanwhile, data to be released on 3 January will highlight the economic benefits of Australia’s free-trade deals with China and South Korea.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND TRADE

Labor’s wage bargaining plans a risk to exports

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 20-Dec-18

Tom Reid of the Australian Mines & Metals Association has warned that a shift to industry-wide enterprise bargaining could undermine the competitiveness and sustainability of the nation’s resources sector. Labor proposes to restrict industry-wide bargaining to sectors that have low wages, although unions advocate extending it to other sectors of the economy. Meanwhile, Australian Retailers Association CEO Russell Zimmerman says industry-wide bargaining may be a viable alternative to the costly enterprise bargaining process for small retailers.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN MINES AND METALS ASSOCIATION (INCORPORATED), AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN RETAILERS ASSOCIATION, ACTU, ESSO AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES, MARITIME UNION OF AUSTRALIA, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA

Labor’s boost to union power alarms business

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Original article by Phillip Coorey
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 & 4 : 19-Dec-18

Federal Opposition Leader Bill Shorten has told Labor’s national conference that the enterprise bargaining system is not working. The national conference has endorsed a new industrial relations policy platform which includes the reinstatement of industry-wide enterprise bargaining. Shorten has also committed to reversing penalty rate cuts and abolishing the Australian Building & Construction Commission and the Registered Organisations Commission if Labor wins the 2019 election. Employer groups have urged Labor to clarify whether pattern bargaining will be restricted to low-paid workers or if it will apply across the economy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIAN BUILDING AND CONSTRUCTION COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. REGISTERED ORGANISATIONS COMMISSION, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, AUSTRALIAN CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF JOBS AND SMALL BUSINESS, AUSTRALIAN WORKERS’ UNION-FEDERATION OF INDUSTRIAL, MANUFACTURING AND ENGINEERING EMPLOYEES

Shorten government would introduce Fair Work pay equity rules

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Original article by Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 9 : 18-Dec-18

Measures aimed at reducing the gender pay gap will be unveiled at Labor’s national conference on 18 December. Amongst other things, a Labor government would give the Fair Work Commission greater power to undertake pay equity reviews and increase wages in sectors where the majority of workers are women. Deputy Opposition Leader Tanya Plibersek says the existing laws on pay equity have proven to be inadequate.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. WORKPLACE GENDER EQUALITY AGENCY

Shorten vows to restore a fair go

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Original article by Troy Bramston
The Australian – Page: 6 : 14-Dec-18

Opposition leader Bill Shorten has outlined some of the key policy areas that will be part of its 2019 election campaign. Amongst other things, Labor will legislate to overturn the Fair Work Commission’s penalty rate cuts and introduce a new regulatory regime for labour hire firms. Labor also intends to increase the highest marginal income tax rate by two per cent, abolish the Medicare rebate freeze and restore funding for schools and public hospital to the levels before the Coalition took office in 2013.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION

Labor looks at sector-wide right to strike

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Original article by Phillip Coorey, David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 4 : 13-Dec-18

Labor’s workplace relations spokesman Brendan O’Connor has advised that industry-wide enterprise bargaining for low-paid workers will be part of its election platform. He has also told the National Press Club that Labor will consider reforms that would permit workers to engage in sector-wide industrial action during enterprise bargaining negotiations. O’Connor argues that evidence from other OECD countries that allow pattern bargaining suggests that there would a low risk of sector-wide industrial action. Key employer groups oppose the reintroduction of pattern bargaining.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA), ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT, BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, ACTU, THE MENZIES RESEARCH CENTRE LIMITED, CONSTRUCTION, FORESTRY, MARITIME, MINING AND ENERGY UNION OF AUSTRALIA

US giants castigate anti-encryption laws

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Original article by John Durie, Tom McIlroy
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 2 : 13-Dec-18

Facebook, Google, Apple and Microsoft are among a coalition of global technology companies that have criticised the federal government’s encryption laws. The Reform Government Surveillance coalition has described the new laws as "deeply flawed" and urged the government to make amendments when parliament resumes. The encryption bill was passed after Labor backed down on its proposed amendments, although the government has signalled that it may open to some of Labor’s changes.

CORPORATES
FACEBOOK INCORPORATED, GOOGLE INCORPORATED, APPLE INCORPORATED, MICROSOFT CORPORATION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF HOME AFFAIRS, DROPBOX INCORPORATED, SNAP, EVERNOTE, OATH, YAHOO! INCORPORATED, UNITED STATES. NATIONAL SECURITY AGENCY, UNITED STATES. FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION

Labor’s spending plans could hit a wall

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Original article by John Kehoe
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 5 : 13-Dec-18

Labor plans to increase tax revenue by about $30bn over four years if it wins the 2019 federal election, and by nearly $280bn over a decade. However, the majority of Senate crossbenchers oppose Labor’s key tax policy initiatives, including its negative gearing reforms and the abolition of cash refunds for excess dividend imputation credits. Analysis suggests that Labor’s tax revenue would be up to $19bn lower than forecast if the Senate were to reject its key tax measures.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, CENTRE ALLIANCE, ONE NATION PARTY, AUSTRALIAN CONSERVATIVES, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, DELOITTE ACCESS ECONOMICS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE TREASURY

Unions test Labor with airline fight

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 12-Dec-18

Labor will seek support for industry-wide enterprise bargaining for low-paid workers at its upcoming national conference. However, the Transport Workers’ Union will push for the policy on industry-wide bargaining to be broadened to include the aviation sector. Leaders of rival unions do not believe that there is much support within Labor’s senior ranks for such a move, while Qantas CEO Alan Joyce recently warned of the impact that doing so would have on both the airline’s supply chain and the broader economy.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION, QANTAS AIRWAYS LIMITED – ASX QAN, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, NATIONAL PRESS CLUB (AUSTRALIA)