Australian Council of Trade Unions
MEDIA RELEASE
Embargoed to 12.01am, 31 December 2009
New protections and minimum standards will be
better for all Australian workers
New minimum employment standards that come into effect on New Year’s Day will be
good for all Australian workers and represent a major step forward from WorkChoices,
say unions.
Welcoming the changes, the ACTU says the 10 National Employment Standards deliver
on a core part of the Your Rights at Work union and community campaign against
WorkChoices.
They set out minimum entitlements for all workers that cannot be taken away under any
circumstances, including hours of work, leave, notice of termination and redundancy
pay.
Also, a raft of modern industry awards which begin to take effect from 1 January will
provide additional enforceable minimum employment terms and conditions for hundreds
of thousands of other workers, including minimum wages, penalty rates, and
superannuation.
But ACTU President Sharan Burrow said the newly-won rights and protections were
already under threat from the Federal Opposition led by Tony Abbott, who has signalled
he wants to bring back a new version of WorkChoices.
“We’ve come a long way in the past two years since the successful union and
community campaign against the former Liberal Government’s WorkChoices laws,” Ms
Burrow said.
“Those laws removed protection from unfair dismissal gave many young and vulnerable
workers little or no job security.
“They stripped away the safety net and made it almost impossible for workers to
collectively bargain, exposing them to harassment or discrimination for joining a union.
“The new rights and protections that come into force on New Year’s Day are in addition
to enhanced unfair dismissal protection, rights to collective bargaining and a good faith
bargaining regime for all workers that began in July 2009.”
A key innovation in the improved safety net is a new right to request flexible working
arrangements.
Employers will for the first time have a legal obligation to seriously consider a request for
flexible work arrangements – such as different start and finish times, or working from
home - and only refuse it on reasonable business grounds.
Ms Burrow said this was a crucial breakthrough for working parents juggling family
responsibilities, but would also benefit employers by increasing staff retention, reducing
absenteeism, and achieving greater productivity through increased job satisfaction.
“Parents and carers often face obstacles to participating in the workforce, and one
significant hurdle has always been inflexible working hours. Improving workforce
participation for parents is an ongoing goal of Australian unions,” Ms Burrow said.
Unions will be working with the Federal Government to ensure workers are informed of
their improved rights and employers are aware of their new obligations.
More information about the new rights and protections is available at www.actu.asn.au
NEWS 
