Job security Senate inquiry to hear from Mackay and Moranbah

Without secure employment, people can’t plan their lives, can’t pay their rent or mortgages and are always worrying if they’ll have enough to pay the weekly bills.

Queensland Council of Unions general secretary Michael Clifford. Picture: Contributed

Workers, politicians and media will focus on job security next week in Mackay – a critical issue on workers and their families, and in the communities where they live.

A Senate Inquiry was to travel to Moranbah and Mackay on July 12 and 13 for a federal probe into the impact of insecure or precarious employment on wages, the economy and workplace rights.

The hearings will now be held remotely because of Covid-19 changes.

More than one in four Australian workers – including in regional areas like central Queensland – are now in labour hire or casual employment.

Without secure employment, people can’t plan their lives, can’t pay their rent or mortgages and are always worrying if they’ll have enough to pay the weekly bills.

They have no leave entitlements, no sick leave, and are fearful of speaking up on health and safety issues.

Having a secure and reliable job means workers can make long-term decisions about the financial future of their families, and the local Mackay community benefits from that certainty. Businesses from manufacturing to media can invest and grow.

Every worker has the right to be safe and respected at work, and every worker has the right to secure employment. That means strong health and safety laws, provisions to prevent sexual harassment, decent pay and fair conditions, and especially, the right to the same pay for the same job.

Some labour hire workers can work alongside a permanent employee doing the same task but being paid far less, and are reluctant to speak out on workplace issues for fear of losing shifts or their job.

At the Grosvenor Coal Mine near Moranbah, it’s estimated 75 per cent of the workforce is labour hire or contractors.

After last year’s horror explosion at Grosvenor, the recent Coal Mining Board of Inquiry highlighted the reluctance of workers with no job security to raise safety concerns.

Unions are fighting for labour hire and contract workers to have more certainty and security in their workplace – an outcome that will benefit workers, their families and the local community.

While mining is an important industry around Mackay, casual employment arrangements also impact local Mackay region industries such as agriculture, hospitality, health care and tourism. It also impacts on their families with many partners and adult children impacted by the effects of insecure work.

Safe and secure employment, and the right to a reliable job, leads to secure and safe communities.

Insecure employment, conversely, creates financial uncertainty which flows on to affect small businesses and local economies.

While unions are always there for their members in Mackay and Moranbah, we will be stepping up activities over the next two weeks to highlight the risks of insecure employment, and the benefits of secure jobs.

Unions fought and won for laws to shut down dodgy labour hire operators, as well as tougher punishments for wage theft in Queensland. We’re fighting for stronger laws to prevent sexual harassment.

And we’ll keep fighting for secure jobs for local workers and the communities in and around Mackay that will benefit.

Michael Clifford, Queensland Council of Unions general secretary