Company directors face tough penalties for avoiding employee entitlements under new laws cracking down on "sharp corporate practices" such as phoenixing and asset-shifting.
The ETU is anticipating multiple backpay claims on behalf of thousands of labour hire and FIFO workers at resource, electrical supply and construction companies across Australia as part of a new campaign seeking to challenge their classification as casuals.
NSW Labor has laid out its plan to beef up the State's OHS, anti-discrimination and anti-bullying jurisdiction, including by reviving the industrial court and extending access to private sector employees, if it wins Saturday's election.
The Victorian Labor government has flagged it will aim for modest annual pay rises of 2%, setting the scene for an arm-wrestle with public sector unions in bargaining over a series of major enterprise agreements.
The Morrison Government should withdraw its casual conversion bill due to "serious problems", according to Adelaide University Professor of Law, Andrew Stewart, who has also opened fire on the "worse than useless" regulation introduced to purportedly address employers' liabilities in the wake of the Workpac v Skene ruling.
Taxpayers appear set to shell out more than $1 million in legal costs over the Federal Court challenge relating to the Registered Organisations Commission's investigation into past donations by the AWU.
Employers have decried as "unfixing a problem" a Labor attempt to disallow new casual loading offset regulations, Shadow IR Minister Brendan O'Connor countering that the rules are just the Government's way of shifting responsibility.
There is an overwhelming case for change to the Fair Work Act, but neither a Shorten Labor Government nor a returned Coalition administration are likely to undertake fundamental reform, according to Adelaide University Professor of Law, Andrew Stewart.
A federal Labor government would establish a single Whistleblowing Act and protection authority to ensure "companies are held to the same standard as unions", according to the ALP, but IR Minister Kelly O'Dwyer says its planned reward scheme could benefit those involved in misconduct.
