General

Work And Family

Howard creates "A Fine Mess"

By Suzanne Hammond
CPSU-SPSF Federal Women's Industrial Officer

Laurel and Hardy could not have done a better Job.

The Government's amendments to WorkChoices have made working out what a fair wage is as clear as mud.

What is `fair' is to be decided by the Workplace Authority Director. This is not a transparent process and is very subjective. An agreement is tested against the protected award conditions set in an award that binds an employer. However, it is important to be aware that over the past few years the Federal Government has stripped many entitlements from awards and they are now left with at best ten protected conditions.

Also, under the new `fairness' test the Workplace Authority can consider the personal circumstances of the worker. Does this mean that women and younger workers can be paid less? In the past women's wages have suffered from ideas that their work is secondary and that they work for the extras. The idea of equal pay for work of equal value is tossed away. All of the hard work done by the PSA on equal remuneration cases in having women's work properly valued and paid gives way to ideas that wages can be determined by a worker's personal situation. Not only is this unfair but it will also lead to discrimination and more than likely contravenes anti-discrimination legislation.

Employers can also find their way around the fairness test by claiming regional variations and particular labour market characteristics.

There is no practical avenue for a worker to appeal against a decision and there is no obligation on the Authority to check details provided by the employer. The ACTU has advice that indicates that the only way a worker can appeal the decision is to the High Court, an avenue out of reach for most workers.

Furthermore, recently the Fair Pay Commissioner Prof. Harper said that when determining the minimum wage increases he will consider tax and welfare arrangements. Again this undermines the principles of a fair days pay for a fair days work. Does this mean that the taxpayer subsidises the employers for not paying a proper wage?

The real truth about Howard's WorkChoices and how `fair' it is for women can be found in the latest research report from the What Women Want group. Their independent research found that the gender gap has widened, that gender inequality was worse in part-time and casual employment and that wage growth in sectors where women work lags behind sectors where men work. They also found that the gender gap is higher in Western Australia where there is the highest incidence of Australian Workplace Agreements. The Report is damning of WorkChoices and can be found on website www.nfaw.org. WorkChoices is a mess but worse still it is deliberate, unfair and unjust.

Suzanne Hammond
Federal Women's Industrial Officer.

© 2001 Community & Public Sector Union - State Public Services Federation (CPSU-SPSF) - National Office

http://www.cpsu-spsf.asn.au/latest_news/general/20070724_women.html
Last Modified: 24 Jul 2007