IR reforms will create 'working poor': ALP

[ShiningPlain]

No excuse: Kevin Andrews says unemployed people will lose their benefits if they refuse to take a job (ABC TV)

The Federal Opposition says a new class of working poor will be created in Australia under the Government's planned industrial relations (IR) changes.

Federal Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews has confirmed that unemployed people will lose their payments from Centrelink if they refuse to take a job under the IR policy.

Mr Andrews was asked on the ABC's Insiders program whether it was true that an unemployed man could lose his benefit if he refused a job that did not include penalties or public holidays, and Mr Andrews confirmed this.

"For an individual the best form of welfare they can have is to have a job," he said.

Government advertising says items such as holiday pay and penalty rates will be protected by law, but the employee can choose to trade them away.

Labor's Stephen Smith says the Minister has revealed there will be no choice.

"What we will end up with is people being forced onto inferior wages, inferior conditions and the great risk is that we end up with a working poor just as you find in the United States," he said.

"What the Minister has confirmed today is that people will be left effectively with no choice."

'Severe penalty'

The head of a social welfare group says unemployed people who refuse to take a job would miss out on welfare payments for eight weeks.

Michael Raper of the National Welfare Rights Network says it is a severe penalty.

"We've been trying to draw attention to the fact that any unemployed person will have to accept whatever conditions they're offered because if you reject a job offer you will lose Centrelink payments for eight weeks," he said.

"I am glad the Minister is at least being honest about this now."

The legislation is due to be introduced to Parliament next week.

http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200510/s1488612.htm

[trixxy3]

I'm pretty sure that you have to accept a job if you're offered it now, or at least turn up to an interview if offered one while on the dole, unless you want to lose your benefits now, so that sounds the same.

The thing I most fear about this proposed IR reform is that instead of getting or asking for wage rises, people are looking towards selling back their own entitlements just to get by, which in my opinion should be a last resort rather than what it is being made out to be now: as a legitimate way to get more cash in hand for workers.

In turn that is going to increase productivity, efficiency by having the same people in the same jobs instead of temps, results in more of these "assistant" or lower paid roles, execs and bosses reap the rewards, very little if any seeps back to the real workers, the rich get richer, take their holidays which they can afford to because they can afford to not cash them in, while the general population of peasants struggle to live off the land.

Sounds Midievil. All hail King Howard or face the consequence:

But hopefully society has come far enough to realise that its the peasant roles that actually turn the wheels rather than steer the cart of a society, and they get suitable compensated.