QLD: ACTUQ slams Labors new IR proposals

AAP General News (Australia)
12-11-1998
QLD: ACTUQ slams Labors new IR proposals

By Selina Day

BRISBANE, Dec 11 AAP - A proposed overhaul of Queenslands industrial relations legislation
- rated by the Labor government as fair and balanced - was bucketed today by Labors
traditional ally, the Australian Council of Trades Unions.

Industrial Relations Minister Paul Braddy said recommendations of a taskforce examining the
states current workplace legislation were based on "freedom of choice" and negotiation,
rather than conflict.

"I think theres a lot of good in this for the community, and that fair-minded unionists
and fair-minded employers will be happy with it," Mr Braddy said.

But the ACTU Queensland (ACTUQ) said it could regard the recommendations only as "fair or
better" than the "sewerage" handed to the union movement by the Coalition government.

A key proposal of the taskforce is the removal of the unfair dismissal exemption relating
to workers in their first year with an employer with 15 or fewer employees. Thus, small
business would be subject to the same strength of unfair dismissal laws as all other
employers.

But unions are unhappy about a recommendation to retain the controversial Queensland
Workplace Agreements (QWAs), introduced by the Borbidge government.

Premier Peter Beattie had wanted to scrap the individual-bargaining system but was obliged
to keep it because of a commitment to independent Peter Wellington.

(Before last Saturdays Mulgrave by-election, which Labor won, Mr Beatties then-minority
government had relied on Mr Wellingtons support to govern.)

ACTUQ secretary John Thompson said QWAs were inequitable and the ACTUQ would do what it
could during discussions on any legislation to have QWAs abolished.

"Last time round (then industrial relations minister Santo) Santoro gave employers almost
everything they wanted and we were served up with the greatest piece of sewerage weve ever
seen," Mr Thompson said.

"So anything we get now can be regarded as fair or better, but from our point of view were
still not happy with whats come out of the taskforce."

Other key recommendations of the 166 outlined in the report include:

* giving the Industrial Relations Commission an enhanced role and powers, including
conciliation and mediation, in enterprise agreements, should negotiations break down;

* replacing the adversarial climate of industrial action with a new process emphasising
negotiation rather than confrontation and which includes a "peace obligation"; and

* extending to all areas of the workforce minimum standards of wages and employment
conditions, instead of such conditions applying only to workers under awards.

Opposition industrial relations spokesman Mr Santoro said the recommendations would return
power to big unions, destroy jobs growth and damage business.

"Its an anti-job report and its going to be very bad news for Queensland small business
and employment," Mr Santoro said.

Mr Braddy acknowledged that the proposal to retain QWAs would disappoint the union
movement.

The taskforce, headed by Griffith University Pro Vice-Chancellor Margaret Gardner,
considered more than 200 submissions and the views of about 400 people at public meetings
around Queensland.

It found current legislation was overly complex, and that the diversity of employment
circumstances had to be taken into account.

Its report was now open to public submission.

AAP sd/it

KEYWORD: OVERHAUL NIGHTLEAD

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