|
June 2, 2006
Spotlight was a classic moment in the IR conflict. What was highlighted in federal Parliament by the ALP was that employees at Spotlight, a Melbourne-based chain of 100 fabrics and homewares stores, have lost a lot under the new AWA agreement. One of the staff in Spotlight's Coffs Harbour shop, Annette Harris, has become a cause celebre of the WorkChoices resistance movement. The company offered her a new contract which removed her shift penalties and other benefits worth $90 a week, in return for a new rate of pay which lifted her income by 2 cents an hour.
Spotlight employees had lost the following: all penalty rates including for public holidays; all overtime; rest breaks; shift allowances; sick leave allowances; rostered days off; uniform allowances; meal allowances; and first aid allowances. Furthermore, there will be no restrictions on the number of consecutive days employees can be required to work without a break, and no minimum break between shifts. For this, the employee receives a pay increase of 2c to $14.30 an hour.
The effective reduction in wages was legal and not an an isolated incident.
The Federal Government's Employment Advocate, Peter McIlwain, told a Senate committee on Monday that his office had analysed 250 of the 6263 AWAs lodged in the first month of the new system.
Of this sample of new workplace deals, 40 per cent stripped workers' entitlement to public holidays; 52 per cent reduced their shift loading payments; 63 per cent cut penalty rates; and 64 per cent removed leave loading payments. Were these workers offered higher levels of base pay in return for losing these entitlements? It was not possible to say, based on the information available, said McIlwain.
But it was clear that 22 per cent of the sampled agreements allowed for no pay rises in the life of the agreement, he said, implying that, after adjusting for inflation, these workers would face falling real wages.
|
Australia practices American style capitalism, which is consumer dependent. I am not sure why trampling on wage inflation in this manner would procure any benefit.
Other nations are willing to fund us with cheap credit while we have inflating wages and purchase madly. Our economy is dependent on us consuming without end as well. Increasing consumerism relies on increasing disposable income.