$10 MILLION WAGES RECOVERY FOR QUEENSLAND EMPLOYEES

Queensland Government industrial inspectors recovered $10.2 million in wages for Queensland workers last year, according to the 2005-06 Annual Report for the Department of Industrial Relations.

The Department of Industrial Relations was merged with the Employment function from the former Department of Employment and Training after the recent state election and the Annual Report records statistics for the stand alone authority, prior to merging.

Employment and Industrial Relations Minister John Mickel said nearly 6,500 wage complaints were investigated and finalised during 2005-06 and 160 prosecutions were carried out by department inspectors during the year.

Workplace Health and Safety Queensland carried out 171 prosecutions in 2005-2006.

Employers breaching the state's workplace health and safety laws had to pay fines and costs of $4.2 million and more than 26,000 workplaces were audited (an increase of more than 25 per cent on 2004-05) and more than 18,600 enforcement notices issued. Nearly 500 notices were issued as on-the-spot fines.

The Electrical Safety Office during 2005-06 initiated 2,800 investigations and issued more than 1,600 electrical safety notices, with 31 prosecutions launched.

Mr Mickel said it had been a difficult year for anyone interested in fair and equitable industrial relations given the Howard Government’s Work Choices laws but he stressed the State Government had not given up the fight on behalf of all Queenslanders.

“Our battle with Canberra on behalf of Queensland workers continues, as does our efforts to make workplaces safer, fairer and more productive,” Mr Mickel said.

“Most Queensland employers are doing the right thing by their employees but industrial and safety laws have to be firmly enforced because every worker has a right to a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work - and in a safe environment.”

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Media contact: Chris Brown 3224 7349 or Elouise Campion 3224 6784.

09 November, 2006