Published Thursday, 12 July, 2007 at 12:30 PM
Minister for State Development, Employment and Industrial Relations
The Honourable John Mickel
HOCKEY URGED TO LIFT GAME ON BEHALF OF RIPPED OFF WORKERS
The federal Government has been urged to lift its game and match the efforts of the Queensland Government in defending ripped off workers.
Addressing an Estimates Committee hearing today Employment and Industrial relations Minister John Mickel said the federal Government needed to do a lot more to ensure compliance with pay rates and conditions for workers.
“It’s not just about workers being deliberately ripped off either,” he said. “It’s also about education and access to services – some employers just don’t know what wages they have to pay and often have to ask the state about federal jurisdiction matters.
“Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Joe Hockey has to put a bomb under his Work Choices crew.
“At the moment, workers in the federal jurisdiction taken out of the state arena by the Work Choices legislation, don’t get a fair go when it comes to compliance. Employers deserve better too.”
“I revealed to the Estimates hearing, inspectors with the Department of Employment and Industrial Relations have in the 12 months to June 30, 2007, recovered more than $6 million in wages, investigated more than 3,700 wage complaints and carried out nearly 300 prosecutions relating to wage recovery and breaches of industrial laws.
“Compare this result – which in the past has been higher because we hadn’t lost coverage of nearly half our workers to the federal jurisdiction - with the federal Government’s poor record on compliance.
During the first twelve months of Work Choices, $8.7 million was recovered for employees and just 35 litigations were taken to the court by the Federal Office of Workplace Services – AUSTRALIA WIDE.
Media contact: Chris Brown 3224 7349 or Elouise Campion 3224 6784
July 12, 2007
Addressing an Estimates Committee hearing today Employment and Industrial relations Minister John Mickel said the federal Government needed to do a lot more to ensure compliance with pay rates and conditions for workers.
“It’s not just about workers being deliberately ripped off either,” he said. “It’s also about education and access to services – some employers just don’t know what wages they have to pay and often have to ask the state about federal jurisdiction matters.
“Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Joe Hockey has to put a bomb under his Work Choices crew.
“At the moment, workers in the federal jurisdiction taken out of the state arena by the Work Choices legislation, don’t get a fair go when it comes to compliance. Employers deserve better too.”
“I revealed to the Estimates hearing, inspectors with the Department of Employment and Industrial Relations have in the 12 months to June 30, 2007, recovered more than $6 million in wages, investigated more than 3,700 wage complaints and carried out nearly 300 prosecutions relating to wage recovery and breaches of industrial laws.
“Compare this result – which in the past has been higher because we hadn’t lost coverage of nearly half our workers to the federal jurisdiction - with the federal Government’s poor record on compliance.
During the first twelve months of Work Choices, $8.7 million was recovered for employees and just 35 litigations were taken to the court by the Federal Office of Workplace Services – AUSTRALIA WIDE.
Media contact: Chris Brown 3224 7349 or Elouise Campion 3224 6784
July 12, 2007