May Day, Labour Day or International Workers’ Day is an international celebration of the working classes that dates back to the last century. It commemorates the granting of an eight-hour working day and the struggles of those that helped to achieve it.
These struggles led to the formation of trade unions and collective bargaining for the purpose of securing improvement in pay, benefits, working conditions.
Today, freedom of association is an undisputed fundamental right of all people living in Australia including the right to join trade unions.
Increasingly however, trade unions are campaigning for changes that will reduce industry competitiveness which in turn my ultimately lead to a deterioration in worker pay and conditions.
A union proposal to introduce industry wide bargaining has the potential to undermine tailored bargaining systems and processes. A business will be forced into terms and conditions that may be inconsistent with the way it operates and will reduce market competitiveness.
Agility is vital in today’s fast-moving cyclical business environment and workers are demanding greater flexibility in the way they work brought on by the opportunities of the Gig Economy. The proposal by unions to limit the use of fixed term contracts and the use of casual employees is a restriction on the operational effectiveness of business and the options upon to the workforce. Workers should be free to choose between short term casual employment with higher rates of pay and permanent positions with greater security of tenure, improved conditions offset by lower rates of pay.
Employers must maintain the right to manage their business in a fair and legally compliant manner. The proposal by unions to not require their officials to hold a right of entry permit, to not give notice of entry to a workplace or to access records and to be given the power to participate and advocate in any workplace matter, undermines the ability of an employer to conduct its business in a safe and proper manner.
In the construction industry we are already operating in an environment of unlawful intimidation and bullying by union officials. It is essential therefore that we maintain the integrity of third-party regulators such as the Australian Building and Construction Commission and the Fair Work Ombudsman who can ensure that parties are operating lawfully. Without such regulation unlawful action will become even more widespread leading to project delays, cost blow outs and increased safety incidents. More importantly we will see an exodus of staff and workers from an industry that already struggles to attract the resources required to construct much needed critical infrastructure projects.
The QMCA supports International Worker’s Day and the rights of unions to campaign for improved pay and conditions on behalf of workers. However, we believe that many of the current proposals are being campaigned for by unions on behalf of unions and not with the worker in mind. Indeed many of the proposals currently at the heart of union campaigning could actually result in a deterioration in pay and conditions and have a significant detrimental effect on the workers, economy and Australia’s competitiveness, which should be what the unions are seeking to ‘protect’.
