Advocating a much more severe cut to the Coalition's paid parental leave scheme than Prime Minister Tony Abbott announced on Tuesday, the National Audit Commission has recommended the government cap payments at average weekly earnings and plough the resulting savings into child care assistance.
The Abbott Government's Audit Commission report, released today, recommends axing the FWC's role in setting minimum wages, moving over a decade to a new, lower "minimum wage benchmark" of 44% of average weekly earnings, and allowing "regional variations" that would open up a gap of $100 a week between workers in Tasmania and those in four other states and territories.
The Abbott Government says workers who are not low paid are cornering the lion’s share of rises from the annual minimum wage review, as it seeks to champion increases achieved through enterprise bargaining rather than adjustments to award rates.
Conservative state governments and employer groups have warned the Fair Work Commission that this year's increase in minimum wages needs to be modest to avoid hurting employment.
