Looks like the issue of weekend penalty rates is becoming a battleground for Australia‘s two progressive parties in the lead-up to the election, with Greens leader Richard Di Natale proposing that they be protected with legislation and Labor offering some mixed messages regarding their approach to keeping it under the banner of the Fair Work Commission.
If you’re doing casual or part-time work, especially in hospitality, food or retail, you’d know that penalty rates are often the difference between a good paycheck and a shit one.
The Coalition‘s take on penalty rates is pretty damn clear: they don’t like ’em, and would rather that if they can’t be abolished altogether they be brought to parity, so that Sunday no longer has a higher rate than Saturday. Finance Minister Mathias Cormann says the Coalition will respect whatever decision is handed down by the Fair Work Commission.
But though both Labor and The Greens have made their commitment to penalty rates clear, they’ve spent the day squabbling over what that actually looks like. In Anthony Albanese‘s electorate of Grayndler this morning – which is set to be a prime election battleground between The Greens and Labor – Greens workplace spokesperson Adam Bandt said that the party will press forward on their policy to enshrine penalty rates in law, rather than leaving it up to the Fair Work Commission to decide.
This is despite Labor’s contention that putting it in law rather than the hands of an independent commission means that a conservative government could more easily destroy them if they felt so inclined.
“On Tony Burke’s logic we shouldn’t have laws protecting annual leave or the rights for new mums and dads to take unpaid parental leave in case the Liberals want to come in at some later stage and cut it,” said Bandt.
Labor have been a little more mixed in their messaging today. Bill Shorten said earlier that Labor supports the independence of the Fair Work Commission when it comes to penalty rates. Kim Carr said that Labor supports penalty rates no matter what. Tony Burke said Labor supports the Fair Work Commission, but that the Coalition doesn’t. There’s some conflict here
Eventually, Shorten clarified what he was on about all along: Labor supports the Fair Work Commission, but would make a strongly-worded government submission in favour of penalty rates if they come out on top in the election.
I have no doubt that if we are successful on July 2, my government will further intervene in the case before the decision to strengthen, only as a government submission can, the case to defend our penalty rates.
So they respect the independence of the FWC, but they’re willing to stick it to ’em in favour of weekend workers.
Whew. Lots going on here. We’ll see what this means, but it increasingly looks like weekend penalty rates will be something The Greens will be using to flex their progressive credentials over Labor in a time when it’s less and less certain.
Source: Nine / The Guardian.
Photo: Getty Images / Stefan Postles.
