The FWC's annual wage review expert panel has today granted a "sustainable" CPI-beating 3.5% rise in all award rates and the national minimum wage, emphasising that now the inflation genie is back in the bottle, it will no longer "defer" taking action to reverse the pandemic-driven reduction in real wages.
The ASU has welcomed an Albanese Government commitment "to support pay increases and better career pathways" for community and disability workers if re-elected, with Workplace Relations Minister Murray Watt pledging funding for a workforce project to update the SCHADS Award.
Mining unions have applied to the FWC for a majority support determination to force Rio Tinto to the bargaining table with workers at its Paraburdoo iron ore operations, while an IR researcher says in a forthcoming book that Pilbara workers' ambitious demands at the height of union power more than four decades ago can provide lessons for unions today.
A leading IR lawyer involved in a claim for an "exemption rate" in the Clerks Award says almost all employers of salaried staff, across industries, are breaching record-keeping requirements.
The FWC is seeking submissions on the latest phase of its research on gender-based occupational segregation, which has been released ahead of this year's annual wage review.
A labour law academic has suggested it is time to get creative with awards covering highly feminised industries and move on from the idea of a mere safety net, contrasting the 1960s professional engineers case with the current plight of early childhood education and care workers.
The FWC has today launched the next stage of its gender pay equity research, in which it will examine a dozen awards covering highly-feminised sectors to uncover indicators of gender-based undervaluation of minimum rates, ahead of the 2023-24 annual wage review.
A FWC full bench has marked the conclusion of the eight-year-long review of modern awards by seeking to rebut persistent claims that they are too complex for employers, observing that while "unpacking" clauses might add to their length, it has also provided greater clarity.
With the finish line in sight for the FWC's seven-year "plain language" transformation of its 120-plus modern awards, a full bench says the process is nevertheless an "ongoing exercise" and parties can seek at any time to address ambiguities and uncertainties in the instruments.
A trio of IR academics has warned the FWC that Menulog's bid to establish a landmark award for food-delivery gig workers would end up covering "very few" employees.
