A new report has found that Australia is bucking the tendency in advanced economies of “non-standard” work arrangements contributing to increasing income inequality.
The Department of Employment has crunched the numbers on Australia's 122 modern awards, finding that just half provide for weekend penalty loadings, and 26 rule them out.
Forty years from now, Australia's ageing population will have reduced the country's total workforce participation rate to 62%, income growth will have slowed, and the average annual wage will be $117,300, according to the Treasury's latest long-term forecast, released today.
As the Productivity Commission begins its far-reaching IR inquiry, the first major study of Australian workplaces since 1995 shows most employers believe that workplace productivity levels are steady or improving under the existing regime.
The Fair Work Commission failed to meet its target for finalising unfair claims in 2013-14 due to a big spike in applications early in the reporting period and a shortage of conciliators.
The number of "female breadwinners" is rising, but women are still doing far more housework than men, according to the latest HILDA survey from the University of Melbourne.
Unions lost almost 93,000 members in the 12 months to August last year and density plunged to new lows of 17% overall and 12% in the private sector, according to the ABS.
