The Morrison Government has unveiled a "supercharged" safety net that will double payments to the unemployed and those who lose their jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Attorney-General and IR Minister Christian Porter has appointed former ACTU secretary and ex-Federal Labor Minister Greg Combet as a special government advisor on the coronavirus's impact on Australian workplaces.
Aviation unions have demanded that a $715 million support package flow to workers rather than help prop up the finances of airlines during the COVID-19 crisis.
The CFMMEU and the AWU have made a joint appeal for mining and resources sector workers to receive sick pay if required to self-isolate and for minimum conditions to apply if they are stood down.
Qantas will stand down two-thirds of its 30,000 employees for at least 10 weeks as it imposes further cuts to flights after the latest Federal Government advice against travelling overseas.
IR Minister Christian Porter has ruled out introducing special sick leave for casuals, saying it is not the time for "wholesale structural change" to the IR system for one group of workers.
The "exceptional circumstances" created by COVID-19 warrant delaying the operative date of any minimum wage increase by a fortnight to July 15, according to the Ai Group, while the Victorian Government is calling for a rise of at least 3%.
Virgin Australia has warned of redundancies after deciding to suspend all international flights and to cut domestic capacity in half due to the coronavirus crisis.
The ACTU has repeated its call for two weeks' paid leave for workers who are forced into isolation due to the COVID-19 pandemic, while it has established a webpage to 'name and fame' employers that have come to the party and has foreshadowed that it will be "calling out" employers that have not.
Qantas has warned of a "significant labour surplus across its operations" after announcing plans to cut international flight capacity by 90% and domestic by 60%.
