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| Issue No 103 |  |
20 July 2001 |
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NewsHours Test Case Gets Green Light
The Federal Government and major employer groups have failed in a bid to block the ACTU's test case on reasonable working hours. A five-member full bench of the Australian Industrial Relations Commission this week agreed to hear the case over two weeks in November, rejecting Government and employer submissions to hear it on an award-by-award basis. ACTU Assistant Secretary Richard Marles welcomed the decision, saying the epidemic of excessive working hours and unpaid overtime affecting Australian employees deserved a top-level inquiry. "Now all the procedural roadblocks are out of the way, we can present a compelling case to plug the hole in the award system which is allowing people to be forced to work virtually unlimited hours," said Mr Marles. "The pressure to work longer, less predictable and often unpaid extra hours is stretching working families to the limit. Extreme hours degrade the lives of workers and their families, and are bad for productivity, staff morale and workplace safety. "As a community, we need to deal with problems of overwork in a comprehensive way. This hearing is a crucial step forward," said Mr Marles. The ACTU's claim seeks to establish flexible guidelines on excessive hours of work and unhealthy roster patterns, considering factors such as an employee's workload over an extended period, health and safety and family and community responsibilities. The guidelines would be tailored to suit the requirements of individual industries, without imposing a maximum cap on working time. Recent studies show that up to one-third of Australian employees are working more than 50 hours a week, giving Australia the second-longest working hours in the OECD, trailing only the United States. EXCESSIVE WORKING HOURS IN AUSTRALIA � Australia has the second longest working hours in the OECD, with more than one-quarter of the workforce working more than 50 hours per week (Australian Bureau of Statistics, 1997). � Only 36.5% of the workforce work a standard week and this figure is on the decline (Australian Centre for Industrial Relations Research and Training, 1997.) � Numerous studies have demonstrated the adverse health and safety effects of working more than 48 hours per week. � More than 20% of Australian employees work unpaid overtime (ABS 2000). � Since 1966 the number of part-timers has risen as a percentage of the workforce from 10% to 24.8% (ABS). � The European Union has agreed to limit average weekly working hours to 48, while France is cutting the limit to 35. � Some 25% of Australian employees work hours which be illegal in Europe. THE ACTU'S REASONABLE HOURS TEST CASE � On 14 May 2001, the ACTU lodged an application with the Australian Industrial Relations Commission for a test case to include reasonable hours of work as an Award condition for Australian employees. � It is the first hours case of such general significance since the 1947 Standard Hours Inquiry by the then Conciliation and Arbitration Court which set the eight hour day. � The application proposes a flexible Reasonable Hours Clause for inclusion in 14 Test Case Awards operating across a wide range of industries. The effect of the clause can be tailored to suit the circumstances of individual businesses. � The proposed clause does not propose a numerical limit on hours worked. � The application seeks to establish flexible guidelines on excessive hours of work and unhealthy roster patterns by considering an employee's safety, family responsibilities, workload and the number of hours worked over an extended period. � The proposed clause provides for additional days of annual leave for employees who work a large number of hours over an extended period.
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   Interview: Political Witch HuntCFMEU national secretary John Sutton on the mooted Royal Commission and what is really needed to clean up the building industry E-Change: 1.3 The Nation State in CrisisIn the latest instalment in their study on the new politics, Peter Lewis and Michael Gadiel looks at the rise and fall of the institutional State. Unions: Industrial ViolenceRowan Cahill agrees with Tony Abbott that thuggery and violence are part of Australian industrial relations landscape - but it's the bosses who do most of the bashing. History: Total RecoilNeal Towart looks at how Royal Commissions designed to kick unions have typically come back to haunt their architects. International: Behind the Eight Ball Jubilee Australia's Thea Ormond looks at the international activity being generated around this week's Group of Eight Summit in Genoa Politics: Now We The PeopleA new group believes there is an alternative to corporate gobalism and economic rationalism Satire: Marsden Now to Sue HimselfSydney solicitor John Marsden is suing himself for defamation, claiming the recent libel case he brought did irreparable damage to his reputation. Review: In The HouseResident Four-Eyes Mark Morey attempts the impossible with this attempt at a serious analysis of Big Brother.
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