Workers Online
Workers Online
Workers Online
  Issue No 34 Official Organ of LaborNet 08 October 1999  

 --

 --

 --

Labour Review

What's New in the Information Centre

By Neal Towart - Labour Council Information Centre

Read the latest issue of Labour Review, a resource for union officials and students.

Paradigm Crossed? The statutory occupational health and safety obligations of the business undertaking

Richard Johnstone

Examines Australian statutory OHS obligations in the context of the changing nature of the Australian labour market. The focus is on the statutory "general duties" owed by employers and self-employed persons to both employees and persons other than employees. The scope of these duties when applied to traditional forms of employment and to newer but increasingly common work arrangements such as contracting, outworking, labour hire and franchising is examined. Reforms to deal with the changed labour market are suggested.

(Australian Journal of Labour Law; vol. 12, no. 2, September 1999)

'Take It Or Leave it' AWAs: A Question of Duress?

Joo Cheong Tham

Looks at the ASU v Electrix Pty Ltd case where Powercor Australia (the corporatised successor to the State Electricity Commission of Victoria) outsourced the meter reading function to Victorian Meter Management Pty Ltd (VMM). VMM went into receivership and was replaced by Electrix.

The now retrenched VMM workers were invited to apply for employment with Electrix as meter readers. Some ex VMM meter readers appointed the ASU as their bargaining agent. The manager of Electrix told the meter readers that if they were to be employed by Electrix they had to sign an AWA proposed by that company. The ASU representative was bluntly told "if people don't sign an AWA they won't get a job". (italics appear in transcript).

The question was then, whether Electrix had applied duress to the meter readers by requiring the signing of the AWAs as a condition of employment. The explanatory memorandum that accompanies the Workplace Relations Act, unfortunately for the ASU, seemed to cover such a situation, by stating that the employer can offer employment on the basis that an employee enters into an AWA.

Marshall J., in this case however, said that the plain and unambiguous intention of the Act (s170WG(1)) was to prevent duress, and that extrinsic material such as the explanatory memorandum could not contradict the Act. Thus Electrix had a case to answer and interlocutory relief for the meter readers was granted.

The ASU has since discontinued the case, but similar issues will be debated in a case before the federal Court involving Employment National, another corporatised entity where new employees must sign AWAs.

(Australian Journal of Labour Law; vol. 12, no. 2, September 1999)

Outsourcing: Federal Court Full Bench throws up another obstacle

The above decisions pre-date the North Western Health Care network case, the Stellar Call Centre case and the PP Consultants/St George Bank case. These are discussed at length by Jim Nolan, especially the substantial identity test, in a previous issue of Workers Online, a version of which article is in Australian Industrial Law News.

Also Ron McCallum discussed the issues on Radio National Law Report, on a program devoted to the economic and legal implications of outsourcing. Transcript available via the web address below.

Australian Industrial Law News; newsletter no. 9, 28 September 1999; http://www.abc.net.au/rn/talks/8.30/lawrpt/stories/s55464.htm

Outsourcing: the Jury is Still Out

There is strong statistical and anecdotal evidence that outsourcing in Australia is increasing, yet the implications of this are not well understood. Closer scrutiny of the claims of privatisers and proponents of outsourcing is beginning, as evidenced by the CEDA/Melbourne Institute report discussed in issue 26. This article outlines directions for further research into outsourcing.

(IR Intelligence Report; issue 5, 1999)

Storage and Handling of Dangerous Goods

The National Occupational Health and Safety Commission (NOHSC) is finalising a new standard for the storage and handling of dangerous goods which is intended to become the basis of legislation in all states and territories.

The approach of the NOHSC is a shift away from the totally prescriptive philosophy to a performance based approach. What this means is that the occupier of premises where dangerous goods are stored will have the total responsibility for the safety and health of employees, the public, property and the environment. The national standard will set out performance requirements but not how they are to be achieved.

As the system is likely to be welcomed by manufacturers and distributors, workers will have to be especially vigilant that cost cutting does not compromise safety standards.

(Occupational Health and Safety Update; newsletter no. 8, 6 September 1999)

unions@work: will it work?

According to unions@work the lessons learnt from the experiences of successful overseas unions point to the need to:

� Redirect union resources to organising and recruiting new members, especially by focusing on non-union workplaces;

� Spend more on delegate and activist education;

� Improve and modernise union information and communications systems;

� Use specialist organising teams in strategic recruitment campaigns;

� Build community and workforce support for the industrial and social priorities of the union movement

The article discusses these issues and policy priorities needed.

The conclusion is that unions@work tries to chart a course between the so-called organising and service model of unions.

(IR Intelligence Report; issue 5, 1999)

Cutting Wages a Cure for Unemployment?

Peter Reith sees cutting wages as a key to creating employment. The Five Economists see cutting wages as a key to creating employment. They propose different strategies, but on that aspect they are in agreement.

This paper, based on research conducted by Ian Watson of ACIRRT for a Parliamentary Library research paper, takes issue with this argument.

"the projected effects of the five economists' proposal do not stand up well to critical scrutiny.

� It is probably not possible to achieve the reductions in wages growth by the methods they propose because of the decentralisation of the system. Award wages already lag far behind others and thus imposing restrictions there, which in effect already happens, does not impose restraint on other sectors.

� Cutting wage costs does not mean employers would employ more people.

� Even if new jobs are created, how likely is it that the new workers would come from the ranks of the unemployed or from new labour market entrants.

Very large wage cuts of 25 to 30% could lead to jobs growth at the bottom of the market. Such cuts would ensure massive social dislocation without having any large effect on unemployment because they could only be achieved by subsiding jobs (govt paying part wages) thus contributing to labour market "churning" without creating structural improvements in job opportunities.

The "clever country" of skilled workers does not seem to match such activity aimed at low end jobs.

(IR Intelligence Report; issue 5, 1999)


------

*   View entire issue - print all of the articles!

*   Issue 34 contents

In this issue
Features
*  Interview: A Crack to the Skull
Rail, Tram and Bus Union state secretary Nick Lewocki took on the Carr Government�s radical rail refrom agenda and walked away a winner. He looks back on the week the trains stood still.
*
*  Economics: Green Backs and Dirty Dollars
Paul Ehlrich says the real culprit behind the environmental crisis isn't so much the huge numbers of people in the world or conspicuous over-consumption in the West but an economic system that confuses price with cost.
*
*  Unions: Tally Ho!
A landmark meat industry decision might not have the impact the reith cheer-squad hopes for.
*
*  History: The Western Express
West Australian historians are undertaking a project to chronicle that state's rich rail history.
*
*  Republic: The Referendum: A Spot of Reading
John Passant looks a the propaganda passing as information in the lead-up to the referendum.
*
*  Indigenous: Australia Snubs Nose at the UN
The United Nations General Assembly will be told that Australia has breached an international convention on racial discrimination that Malcolm Fraser�s Government ratified 24 years ago.
*
*  International: Desert Flashpoint
The United Nations has confirmed that demonstrations were suppressed in Western Sahara last month.
*
*  Review: Temper Democratic
Humphrey McQueen has been a fearless critic of received opinions across a range of subjects for many years, and as a consequence has been criticised or more often ignored in debates in Australia.
*
*  Satire: Tax Cuts Come in the Nick of Time for Struggling Packers
Welfare groups have called upon on the Federal Government to bring forward the date of proposed capital gains tax cuts.
*
*  Labour Review: What's New in the Information Centre
Read the latest issue of Labour Review, a resource for union officials and students.
*

News
»  Shaw Slams Rio Tinto Decision
*
»  Conference Sizzles - Now for the Meat
*
»  Cabinet Capers in the Dark Tower
*
»  Anger at Imported Beds for Games Village
*
»  Cowboy Behaviour at the Equestrian Centre
*
»  Wanted: Hardened Hacks with Hearts
*
»  Security Employers Break Law in West
*
»  Confronting Images on Display
*
»  Rooting and Rocking for the Republic
*
»  Organiser of the Year to be Announced November
*
»  Fears for Timorese Who Got Out
*

Columns
»  Guest Report
*
»  Sport
*
»  Trades Hall
*
»  Piers Watch
*

Letters to the editor
»  Off With Their Funds!
*
»  At the Child Care Coalface
*
»  Walsh Bay Development Backed
*

What you can do

Notice Board
- Check out the latest events

Latest Issue

View entire latest issue
- print all of the articles!

Previous Issues

Subject index

Search all issues

Enter keyword(s):
  


Workers Online - 2nd place Labourstart website of the year


BossWatch


Wobbly Radio



[ Home ][ Notice Board ][ Search ][ Previous Issues ][ Latest Issue ]

© 1999-2000 Labor Council of NSW

LaborNET is a resource for the labour movement provided by the Labor Council of NSW

URL: http://workers.labor.net.au/34/d_review_review.html
Last Modified: 15 Nov 2005

[ Privacy Statement | Disclaimer | Credits ]

LaborNET is proudly created, designed and programmed by Social Change Online for the Labor Council of NSW

 *LaborNET*

 Labor Council of NSW

[Workers Online]

[Social Change Online]