Jobs and Skills Summit: Employment Minister Tony Burke confirms workplace reforms
The Albanese Government has used the first day of the Jobs Summit to confirm potentially far reaching workplace reforms.
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Work will begin next week to reform the better off overall test and on legislation to enable multi-employer bargaining.
Federal Employment Minister Tony Burke outlined the number of changes at the completion of the two-hour session on workplace relations.
“I’m interested in anything that gets wages moving, particularly for women workers and I’m interested in opening up the system to small business,” Mr Burke told reporters.
Stronger protections for workers against adverse action, all forms of discrimination, and harassment are also on the table.
While there appears to be consensus on softening the BOOT, the government’s plans to forge ahead with multi-employer bargaining is contentious.
AI Group chief executive Innes Willox raised concern it would risk industrial action across crucial sectors of the economy.
“We need to have as a starting point an assumption in this debate that what we need is not radical reform but a good look at serious repair of the system,” he said.
“As a country we need a modern and open economy with a workplace relations framework that encourages fairness, flexibility and productivity.”
CHALMERS WARNS OF $13,000 CUT TO WAGES
The Treasurer has issued a dire warning to Australian workers, insisting salaries could be thousands of dollars worse off in the near future unless major issues are addressed.
Jim Chalmers made the comments in his opening address to the jobs and skills summit which kicked off the first of two days of discussions on Thursday.
Australians could be out $13,000 per person in real terms over the next four decades, if productivity growth averages 1.2 per cent instead of rising to the 1.5 per cent rate assumed in the Intergenerational report.
“We must make productivity growth an urgent task, a national task, a task for all of us,” he said.
“Not just because higher profits depend on it, but because higher wages depend on it. An economy capable of sustaining full employment depends on it.”
Some 140-plus attendees filtered their way into the Great Hall ahead of the Treasurer’s as excitement built ahead of the two-day summit.
Those on the invite list include Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott, Qantas chief Alan Joyce, mining magnate Andrew “Twiggy” Forrest, union boss Sally McManus and Business Council chief Jennifer Westacott.
One of the major issues foreshadowed ahead of the summit was multi-employer bargaining, changes to the better off overall test (BOOT) and a lift to the migration cap
BIG BOOST FOR STUDENTS
More students will be able to access further education for free after Anthony Albanese unveiled a billion-dollar TAFE package.
The Prime Minister kicked off the jobs and skills summit at Parliament House by announcing 180,000 additional fee-free TAFE places will be made available for 2023.
National cabinet signed off on the jointly funded $1.1bn package when it met on Wednesday.
“It’s my great hope that this jobs and skills summit marks the beginning of a new culture of co-operation, a new focus on working together to deal with the urgent challenges that our economy is facing,” he said.
National cabinet signed off on the jointly funded $1.1bn package when it met on Wednesday.
Some 140-plus attendees filtered their way into the Great Hall ahead of Mr Albanese’s address as excitement built ahead of the two day summit.
One of the major issues foreshadowed ahead of the summit was multi-employer bargaining, changes to the better off overall test (BOOT) and a lift to the migration cap.
Mr Albanese told the gathering not to “dig deeper trenches on the same battlefields,” and asked them to make compromises.
“Compromises will need to be negotiated, sacrifices will need to be made. If we can get it right, if we can seek out points of consensus … the results will certainly be worth it,” he said.
“Let all of us, as leaders and representatives, rise to this moment.
“Let’s work together. Let’s listen to be read to make every effort to turn agreement into action for the benefit of all Australians.”
TREAT WOMEN ‘LIKE IRON ORE’
Grattan Institute chief Danielle Wood said a commitment to full employment should be the summit’s top priority.
Additionally, to “future proof” the economy, Australia must to invest in human capital, harness existing talent pool — with a focus on women — and restore economic dynamism by promoting innovation, job switching and competition in the corporate sector.
“The Australian economy, like all of us, looks increasingly older, fatter, and slower,” Ms Wood said.
She joked that if women’s participation were iron ore, Australia would “dig it up”.
“Women are often excluded from full-time work, and from the most prestigious high-paid roles, because these so-called ‘greedy jobs’ are incompatible with the load of unpaid care still disproportionately shouldered by women,” Ms Wood said.
“I can’t help but reflect that if untapped women’s workforce participation was a massive ore deposit, we would have governments lining up to give tax concessions to get it out of the ground.”
TOXIC WORKPLACES HOLDING WOMEN BACK
The first session of the day was a panel discussion on equal opportunities and pay for women, which Finance Minister Katy Gallagher said was the heart of the government’s priorities.
Attendees were told the gender pay gap should be interpreted as a sign that the strengths of women were not being fully recognised and valued.
“There’s little use in telling women you just need to be more confident, more ambitious, when workplaces don’t value or reward women in the same way,” Chief Executive Women’s Sam Mostyn said.
Australia’s paid parental leave scheme was also flagged at being in the sights of the unions, who want it expanded to 52 weeks by 2040.
“We can’t let this be the legacy for the next generation,” ACTU president Michelle O’Neil said.
Panellist also called for an overhaul to the industrial relations laws, which they said is failing women, especially in the care economy.
“We have a bargaining system that’s designed for large male dominated workplaces, locking women in feminised industries out of system and leaving them without power to join together with others and negotiate.”
But it is the toxic workplace culture that is holding some women back form returning to work.
Equality Institute executive director Emma Fulu attributed it to one of the reasons the nation was experiencing shortages in the services sector.
“Women are saying enough is enough. Do I really want to work in a place that doesn’t value me as a human being?” Ms Fulu said.
“It’s not enough to have a sexual harassment policy if the culture it sits within condones, excuses or minimises that type of everyday sexism and abuse.”
CHILDCARE COSTING VICTORIAN ECONOMY $1.5BN EACH YEAR
More than 26,000 women are locked out of the Victorian workforce, Premier Daniel Andrews told the jobs and skills summit.
Mr Andrews told the gathering that fixing the “broken” childcare system was the “biggest contribution we can make to economic prosperity”.
“We shouldn’t see it as just a matter of fairness. It’s much bigger than that,’ he said.
“Just in my state, there are 26,600 women who are completely locked out of the workforce because of the dynamic that I’ve just spoken about,” he said.
“That costs us $1.5 billion each and every year – that’s just in our state and that’s just those who are completely locked out.
“So, better early childhood education, dealing with childcare deserts, making childcare work for working families, has never been more important.”
JOBS SUMMIT CHEAT SHEET
What is it?
A gathering of business leaders, unions, state and local government representatives, charities and industry groups lead by Prime Minister Anthony Albanese and Treasurer Jim Chalmers.
The official Jobs and Skills Summit will take place in Parliament House in Canberra over two days from September 1 to 2.
Attendees will discuss issues impacting Australia’s labour market and economy more broadly, with a hope consensus can be found on reforms to improve the situation.
Why is it happening?
Labor announced the Summit in mid 2021 in the lead up to the federal election as a way to reset and bring in fresh ideas to deal with Australia’s economic challenges in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic.
At the time it was believed the event would need to focus on expected high unemployment, but with employment ultimately now heading toward record lows, the purview has since expanded into other labour force issues.
The government want to use the Summit to create ideas to solve a number of challenges including improving participation in the workforce, particularly for women, as well as addressing the national skills shortage and boosting wages.
Who will be there?
More than 140 people representing a wide range of businesses, unions and other interests will be attending the two-day Summit.
This includes Australian of the Year Dylan Alcott, Australian Council of Trade Unions secretary Sally McManus, Qantas chief executive Alan Joyce and Business Council of Australia chief Jenifer Westacott.
A full list of attendees is here:
Business and industry groups (52)
Luke Anear, SafetyCulture
Brad Banducci, Woolworths
Debby Blakey, HESTA Super Fund
Anna Bligh, Australian Banking Association
Poul Bottern, National Australian Apprenticeship Association
Alexi Boyd, Council of Small Business Organisations Australia
Simon Butt, Master Builders Australia
Steven Cain, Coles
Scott Charlton, Transurban
Melinda Cilento, Committee for Economic Development of Australia
Tania Constable, Minerals Council of Australia
Jon Davies, Australian Constructors Association
Robyn Denholm, Tech Council of Australia
Adrian Dwyer, Infrastructure Partnerships Australia
Ben Eade, Manufacturing Australia
Sam Elsom, Sea Forest
Brent Eastwood, JBS Foods
Scott Farquhar, Atlassian
Stephen Ferguson, Australian Hotels Association
Steve Fordham, Blackrock Industries
Andrew Forrest, Fortescue Metals Group, The Minderoo Foundation
John Grimes, Smart Energy Council
Mike Henry, BHP
Christine Holgate, Toll Global Express
Alan Joyce, Qantas Group
Alison Kitchen, KPMG
Megan Lilly, Australian Industry Group
Catherine Livingstone, expert
Jill McCabe, Professionals Australia
Andrew McKellar, Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry
Samantha McCulloch, APPEA
Sarah McNamara, Australian Energy Council
Carmel Monaghan, Ramsay Health Care
Sam Mostyn, Chief Executive Women
John Mullen, Telstra
Margy Osmond, Tourism & Transport Forum
Kellie Parker, Rio Tinto
Anthony Pratt, Visy
Mina Radhakrishnan, :Different
Tim Reed, Business Council of Australia
Paul Schroder, AustralianSuper
Rob Scott, Wesfarmers
Tom Seymour, PricewaterhouseCoopers
Alex Simpson, Westcoast Renewable Energy
Fiona Simson, National Farmers’ Federation
Sally Sinclair, National Employment Services Association
Kane Thornton, Clean Energy Council
Ainslie van Onselen, Chartered Accountants Australia and New Zealand
Kate West, Arup
Jennifer Westacott, Business Council of Australia
Innes Willox, Australian Industry Group
Paul Zahra, Australian Retailers Association
Unions (33)
Julia Angrisano, Finance Sector Union
Dr Alison Barnes, National Tertiary Education Union
Karen Batt, Community and Public Sector Union
Dale Beasley, SA Unions
Annie Butler, Australian Nursing and Midwifery Federation
Christy Cain, Construction Forestry Maritime Mining and Energy Union
Michael Clifford, Queensland Council of Unions
Scott Connolly, Australian Council of Trade Unions
Christine Cooper, Independent Education Union
Mark Diamond, Rail, Tram and Bus Union
Melissa Donnelly, Community and Public Sector Union
Gerard Dwyer, Shop, Distributive and Allied Employees’ Association
Correna Haythorpe, Australian Education Union
Luke Hilakari, Victorian Trades Hall Council
Matt Journeaux, Australasian Meat Industry Employees Union
Michael Kaine, Transport Workers Union
Tim Kennedy, United Workers Union
Dr Sharlene Leroy-Dyer, Australian Council of Trade Unions
Erin Madeley, Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance
Sally McManus, Australian Council of Trade Unions
Mark Morey, Unions NSW
Jessica Munday, Unions Tasmania
Steve Murphy, Australian Manufacturing Workers’ Union
Liam O’Brien, Australian Council of Trade Unions
Michele O’Neil, Australian Council of Trade Unions
Teri O’Toole, Flight Attendants Association of Australia
Robert Potter, Australian Services Union
Jade Ritchie, Unions NT
Carolyn Smith, Unions WA
Kasey Tomkins, Unions ACT
Daniel Walton, Australian Workers’ Union
Lloyd Williams, Health Services Union
Michael Wright, Communications, Electrical and Plumbing Union
Government (14)
Daniel Andrews, Victorian Premier
Anne Baker, Isaac Regional Council
Andrew Barr, ACT chief minister
Allan Dale, Cooperative Research Centre for Developing Northern Australia
Dr Cathy Foley, Office of the Chief Scientist
Natasha Fyles, NT Chief Minister
Ben Gauntlett, Australian Human Rights Commission
Kate Jenkins, Australian Human Rights Commission
Peter Malinauskas, SA Premier
Mark McGowan, WA Premier
Annastacia Palaszczuk, Qld Premier
Dominic Perrottet, NSW Premier
Jeremy Rockliff, Tasmanian Premier
Linda Scott, Australian Local Government Association
Community (29)
Dylan Alcott, Australian of the Year
Mohammad Al-Khafaji, Federation of Ethnic Communities’ Councils of Australia
John Azarias, The Lysicrates Foundation
Saviour Buhagiar, Uniting NSW/ACT
Debra Cerasa, Jobs Australia
Helen Dalley-Fisher, Equality Rights Alliance
Jenny Dodd, TAFE Directors Australia
Lin Hatfield Dodds, Benevolent Society
Georgie Dent, The Parenthood
Terese Edwards, National Council of Single Mothers & their Children
Pat Garcia, Catholic Health Australia
Leanne Ho, Economic Justice Australia
Carolyn Hodge, People with Disability Australia
Fiona Jose, Cape York Institute/Cape York Partnerships
Tal Karp, The Y Australia
Jenny Macaffer, Adult Learning Australia
Edwina MacDonald, Australian Council of Social Service
Professor Shelley Mallett, Brotherhood of St. Laurence
Professor John McCallum, National Seniors Australia
Wayne Miller, Ceduna Aboriginal Corporation
Christine Nixon, Royal Australian College of General Practitioners
Kelly O’Shanassy, Australian Conservation Foundation
Samantha Page, Early Childhood Australia
Yasmin Poole, Youth advocate
Luke Rycken, Australian Youth Affairs Coalition
Jodie Taylor, Supply Nation
Pat Turner, Coalition of Peaks
Troy Williams, Independent Tertiary Education Council Australia
Micky Wunungmurra, Arnhem Land Progress Aboriginal Corporation
Academia, think tanks (14)
Professor Jeff Borland, University of Melbourne
Professor Sara Charlesworth, RMIT University
Emma Dawson, Per Capita
Professor Alan Duncan, Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre
Professor Anthony Forsyth, RMIT University
Andrew Fraser, Griffith University
Professor Ross Garnaut, University of Melbourne and Zen Energy
Professor Sue Gordon, Flinders University
Dr Joanna Howe, University of Adelaide
Catriona Jackson, Universities Australia
Professor Shae McCrystal, University of Sydney
Dr Abul Rizvi, expert
Professor John Spoehr, Flinders University, Factory of the Future
Danielle Wood, The Grattan Institute
How can they fix anything in two days?
Treasurer Jim Chalmers has repeatedly said the government does not expect to solve all the economic problems in only two days, but he is confident the event will inspire consensus.
There has also been a lot of activity leading up to the main two days, with more than 60 roundtables on specific topics already held, with results to go toward the final white paper.
What will come out of the Summit?
The Albanese Government is hopeful a lot will come out of the Summit, including ideas for future policy, new reforms and agreements on ways forward to deal with difficult workplace issues like enterprise bargaining.
A white paper on the findings will be published within 12 months of the event.
It is also appearing increasingly likely a deal would be reached on reforming Australia’s enterprise bargaining agreement, potentially lifting the cap on skilled migrant visas and furthering investment in skills training.
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Originally published as Jobs and Skills Summit: Employment Minister Tony Burke confirms workplace reforms
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