WAGE PAYMENT SYSTEMS – AUSTRALIA

Minimum wage must go: unions

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Original article by Anna Patty
The Age – Page: 1 : 2-Nov-17

The ACTU will push for the minimum wage to be replaced by a "living wage", which would be set at 60 per cent of the median wage. ACTU secretary Sally McManus argues that three million Australians are living below the poverty line due to the minimum wage system, and notes that the Fair Work Commission had conceded that the 3.3 per cent increase in the minimum wage in 2017 will still leave many workers in poverty. She adds that a living wage should be high enough to ensure that families can pay for necessities as well as any unexpected expenses.

CORPORATES
ACTU, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT

Rained-off but staff get overtime

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 7 : 17-Oct-17

The full bench of the Fair Work Commission has dismissed an appeal against an earlier ruling concerning workers on the $A50 billion Ichthys LNG project. The Commission had then ruled that workers were entitled to remain on site during bad weather and still be allowed to receive overtime pay as part of their normal pay cycle. Kentz and UGL Operations & Maintenance had appealed the initial ruling.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, KENTZ (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, UGL LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN MANUFACTURING WORKERS’ UNION

Senate push for stronger BOOT test

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Original article by David Marin-Guzman
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 : 5-Oct-17

The Business Council of Australia has supported a Senate committee’s proposal to make changes to the "better off overall test" in the Fair Work Act to ensure that workers’ rights are protected. A BCA spokesman says addressing such deficiencies is necessary in order to enhance the enterprise bargaining system and address the issue of low growth in wages. The Labor-dominated Senate committee recommended some "fine-tuning" of the better off overall test.

CORPORATES
BUSINESS COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, NICK XENOPHON TEAM

Push for stronger better-off work test

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 7 : 4-Oct-17

The report of a Senate committee that has been examining the issue of penalty rates has recommended some "fine-tuning" of the Fair Work Act’s "better-off-overall test" to ensure that workers’ rights are protected. The report is also believed to have concluded that workers should be entitled to trade-off weekend penalty rates in return for higher weekday pay rate in enterprise agreement negotiations, but only if they will be better off overall. The report’s other recommendations include legislative action to overturn the Fair Work Commission’s ruling on Sunday penalty rates.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY

Minimum-wage sting in Coles penalties deal

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 19-Sep-17

A draft enterprise agreement between Coles and the Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees’ ­Association is intended to guarantee that all employees will be paid more than the award rate for the retail industry. If the deal is approved, permanent ­employees who work at night and on weekends will receive award-level penalty rates, as well as the full $A22.10-per-week increase in the minimum wage. However, employees who work solely on weekdays and are now paid above-award rates will receive only 50 per cent of the minimum wage rise.

CORPORATES
COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT

Pay shake-up looms for nation’s retailers

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Original article by Robert Gottliebsen
The Australian – Page: 29 : 6-Sep-17

The majority of large Australian retailers have union-endorsed enterprise agreements, but grocery giant Coles is widely tipped to abandon its disputed workplace agreement in favour of the industrial award system, a move that is likely to be followed by other retailers. Coles employees who are on weekend shifts would receive a pay rise, although staff who only work on weekdays would face a pay cut unless Coles implements a "grandfathering" arrangement for existing employees. About 300,000 employees of large retailers would be affected if the awards system is widely adopted, as well as potentially a further 100,000 fast-food workers.

CORPORATES
COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ALDI STORES SUPERMARKETS PTY LTD, MYER HOLDINGS LIMITED – ASX MYR, DAVID JONES LIMITED, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, KMART AUSTRALIA LIMITED

Union deals hit workers’ pay slips

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Original article by Ewin Hannan, Sofia Gronbech Wright
The Australian – Page: 1 & 6 : 4-Sep-17

Analysis by the Department of Employment suggests that workers in the retail and fast-food sectors would need to work for up to 50 hours during the week to offset the impact of lower Sunday penalty rates in union-backed enterprise agreements. Employment Minister Michaelia Cash says the analysis refutes claims by unions and the Australian Labor Party that workers are compensated for lower weekend penalty rates via higher hourly pay rates during the week. However, the Australian Industry Group has questioned the validity of the analysis.

CORPORATES
AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, THE AUSTRALIAN INDUSTRY GROUP, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, DAVID JONES LIMITED, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, McDONALD’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION

Delay likely for small business waiting on penalty rate trade-off

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 4 : 1-Sep-17

A proposal to allow smaller retailers and fast-food restaurants to scrap penalty rates and overtime pay in return for a 25 per cent increase in base pay has the support of Council of Small Business Australia CEO Peter Strong. However, the Fair Work Commission is not expected to consider permitting a trial of "loaded rates" before the second half of 2018. Strong says unions and employers’ groups that represent large companies are likely to object to the proposal, as many such companies have already traded off Sunday penalty rates in their enterprise agreements.

CORPORATES
COUNCIL OF SMALL BUSINESS ORGANISATIONS OF AUSTRALIA LIMITED, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, ACTU, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, AEROCARE OPERATIONS PTY LTD, TRANSPORT WORKERS’ UNION

Labor ‘hypocrisy’ exposed on penalty rates: Ferguson

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 4 : 31-Aug-17

Tourism Accommodation Australia chairman Martin Ferguson has criticised the Australian Labor Party and the ACTU over their stance on penalty rates. He has accused them of "hypocrisy and dishonesty" for continuing to oppose penalty rate cuts in the wake of revelations that the Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association has struck deals with large companies to trade-off Sunday penalty rates in return for higher base wages. Ferguson is a former president of the ACTU.

CORPORATES
TOURISM ACCOMMODATION AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, NICK XENOPHON TEAM

Union deals cut Sunday pay rates

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Original article by Ewin Hannan
The Australian – Page: 1 & 2 : 30-Aug-17

The Shop Distributive & Allied Employees’ Association and United Voice have struck enterprise bargaining agreements with major employers that either abolish Sunday penalty rates or feature rates that are lower than the industry award. The EBAs cover some 410.000 employees of companies such as Bunnings, McDonald’s, KFC, David Jones and Big W. The EBAs of several large hotel chains also do not include Sunday penalty rates. However, all of the EBAs that were analysed by the Department of Employment trade off penalty rates in return for higher base hourly wage rates.

CORPORATES
SHOP, DISTRIBUTIVE AND ALLIED EMPLOYEES’ ASSOCIATION, UNITED VOICE, BUNNINGS GROUP LIMITED, McDONALD’S AUSTRALIA LIMITED, KFC, DAVID JONES LIMITED, BIG W DISCOUNT STORES, WOOLWORTHS LIMITED – ASX WOW, COLES SUPERMARKETS AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, PIZZA HUT AUSTRALIA, DAN MURPHY’S, THE REJECT SHOP LIMITED – ASX TRS, PROUDS JEWELLERS PTY LTD, IKEA TRADING PTY LTD, PRICELINE PTY LTD, INTER-CONTINENTAL HOTELS GROUP, SHERATON MIRAGE GOLD COAST HOTEL, LANGHAM HOTELS INTERNATIONAL, PARK ROYAL HOLDINGS PTY LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF EMPLOYMENT, AUSTRALIAN LABOR PARTY, ACTU, AUSTRALIA. FAIR WORK COMMISSION, GRILL’D PTY LTD, ESTEE LAUDER PTY LTD, SUPER RETAIL GROUP LIMITED – ASX SUL, RACV CLUBS AND RESORTS, UNIVERSITY OF ADELAIDE