INCREASED COSTS TO BUSINESS – FEWER LOCAL JOBS
The Member for Berowra Philip Ruddock said today that the Draft "Modernised" Awards released by the Australian Industrial Relations Commission have the potential to increase costs to business and place further pressure on locals.
“The AIRC was placed in an untenable position by Julia Gillard with the instruction that no employee be worse off and there be no increased cost to business, from the “modernisation” of Awards.
It is clear that the Rudd Government has underestimated the scale of the task of "modernising" the more 4000 awards and 115,000 employee classifications, particularly under the constraints imposed by the Government.
Employer and industry organisations have criticised the draft awards as having the potential to take workplaces back decades in terms of work practices.
While this has serious implications for increased regulation and costs, it could also drive down productivity, impact on economic growth and increase unemployment.
‘It is vital for Australia's international competitiveness that we continue to strive for greater workplace flexibility,’ Philip Ruddock said.