Industrial News 2008

March 2008

Coalition attempt to block abolition of AWAs

Legislation to repeal the former Howard government’s unfair WorkChoices laws has been introduced into the national Parliament as promised by the Australian Labor Party during last year’s election campaign.

The new legislation, among other things, will prevent the making of further individual Australian Workplace Agreements (AWAs). AWAs made before the legislation commences however, will run their term (up to five years).

Employers who had AWAs in force at 1 December 2007 will be able to offer a new type of individual contract known as Interim Transitional Employment Agreements (ITEAs) but only to new employees or those employees already employed on an AWA. Such agreements are a temporary measure however, and will not be able to operate past 31 December 2009.After this date it is intended that no statutory individual agreements will be allowed.

Conditions offered to employees covered by ITEAs must not be less than those contained in a collective agreement operating at a workplace or, if none exists, the relevant award. Also, new collective agreements will have to offer conditions in line with the whole of a relevant award; an improvement on the former government’s misnamed ‘Fairness Test’ which only compared agreements against some, but not all, award conditions. The Bill also gives the Australian Industrial Relations Commission the power to modernise and simplify awards.

A further Bill was introduced into the national Parliament to remove the former government’s harsh and punitive legislation which made funding to universities conditional on a requirement to offer all employees AWAs and imposing strict government scrutiny of collective agreements to ensure certain criteria were met. Introduced in 2003, the legislation was another example of the Howard government’s unprecedented interference and control over industrial matters and the management of workplaces in general. In the lead up to last year’s election the former government refused to rule out similar arrangements in relation to the public health sector.

With the Opposition still in control of the Senate at present the Bill has been referred to an inquiry which is due to report to the Parliament on 17 March 2008.While the Opposition remains unclear in their support or otherwise for the abolition of AWAs, the latest reports indicate that they will support the changes.

The remainder of the ALP election policy to repeal WorkChoices is due to be introduced into the national Parliament later this year. Further legislation is expected to deal with matters such as: improving unfair dismissal rights and improving employees’ ability to genuinely negotiate with their employer over wages and conditions.

Debbie Richards and Andrew McCarthy
ANF Federal Industrial Officers