Business leaders have moved to thwart Labor’s plans to restore workers’ penalty rates in the first 100 days of a Shorten government, urging current Senate crossbenchers to resist attempts to fast-track sweeping industrial relations reforms before June 30.
As Labor plans to pivot to its preferred policy battleground of workplace relations this week, arguing employees will be about $8700 a year better off under its plan to restore penalty rates, the Australian Industry Group warned there was insufficient time for “genuine consultation” on the changes before the new Senate was sworn in.
The Weekend Australian reported exclusively on Saturday that Labor was preparing to maximise its chances of getting the reversal of penalty rate cuts through the Senate before June 30 if it wins the election with a quick resumption of parliament to consider some of its industrial relations reforms.
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The danger for an elected Labor government would be that the new Senate could include fewer Greens members, more conservative independents from Queensland and a smaller group holding the balance of power, which could make negotiations more difficult.
AiGroup chief executive Innes Willox has told the Senate crossbenchers the proposed changes raise complex issues that needed to be thoroughly considered before any legislative changes were implemented.
“Following the necessary wider consultation process, there are longstanding, formal consultation processes that are used when changes to workplace relations laws are proposed,’’ he said in a 14-page letter obtained by The Australian.
“It would be impossible for the relevant consultation processes to be completed, in a genuine way, in the short space of time between 18 May and 30 June 2019.”
In the letter, Mr Willox warned the senators that Labor’s raft of industrial relations changes — including restoring penalty rates, cracking down on labour hire businesses, introducing a living wage and restricting casual employment — could choke business viability and employment and lead to other unintended consequences.
But Mr Shorten said: “Penalty rates are not a luxury — they help people put food on the table and petrol in the car.”
Mr Willox also warned of potential adverse impacts of a proposed Coalition plan to implement a national labour hire licensing scheme, as recommended by the government’s migrant workers’ taskforce.
Mr Willox warned that Labor’s proposed restoration of penalty rates was “particularly unfair and offensive to employers”, and would “make a mockery” of the notion of an independent workplace umpire.
“What is the point in having an independent umpire if the umpire is only able to rule in favour of one of the parties?” he said.
Mr Willox said industry groups should be directly consulted on proposed industrial relations changes before consideration of the legislation by the National Workplace Relations Consultative Council, which includes peak employer groups and unions.
A formal intergovernmental agreement was also in place requiring consultation with the states and territories, Mr Willox told crossbenchers.
An inquiry by the Senate’s education and employment legislation committee should then be conducted before legislation was considered by the parliament, Mr Willox said.
Between the May 18 election and June 30, the existing Senate crossbench — with 11 independent and micro-party senators plus the Greens — remains in place.
They are a “known quantity” for Labor, which has succeeded in getting legislation the government opposed through the Senate.
Mr Shorten, after days of being on the back foot over Labor’s climate change costings, will kick off a “wages week” campaign today, arguing retail, fast food, hospitality and pharmacy award workers will be the big winners from Labor’s plan to restore penalty rates.
According to ALP-supplied figures, a fast-food worker would be about $3180 a year better off under Labor, or $9540 over a parliamentary term. Pharmacy award workers would be about $8730 a year better off under a Shorten government, or $25,600 over three years, the party said.
The Fair Work Commission approved Sunday and public holiday penalty rate reductions in 2017, with further cuts to be phased in from July 1.
Mr Shorten, who will campaign in north Queensland today, said the federal election was a contest between Labor’s plan to restore penalty rates “or bigger tax loopholes for the top end of town under the Liberals”.
“If elected, we will legislate to reverse the cuts to penalty rates in our first 100 days. And we will change the law to make sure they can’t be cut for anyone again,’’ Mr Shorten said.
Centre Alliance, which controls two Senate votes, has backed Mr Shorten’s calls to restore penalty rates to workers within 100 days if Labor wins the election.
Centre Alliance senator Rex Patrick said yesterday he did not think that penalty rates should have gone backwards and will vote to overturn them in the Senate.
“Centre Alliance will support the reinstatement but prefers to see the task of setting penalty rates ultimately removed from the parliament and returned to the Fair Work Commission, perhaps with adjusted input parameters to the commission’s decision making,” Senator Patrick said.
Additional Reporting: Alice Workman
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