More IR changes for OZ?

[Monty Cantsin]

The Prime Minister has moved to hose down speculation about a new round of industrial relations changes.

Finance Minister Nick Minchin last night told a meeting of the HR Nicholls Society that the Government should push on with another wave of industrial relations reform.

He has since said those comments were a personal view and not the Government's policy.

However, he has still received support from Environment Minister Ian Campbell, who says there should be more workplace relations changes as part of broader economic reforms.

Unions say working people should be afraid of any new round of changes.

But John Howard says there is no plan to take any new industrial relations changes to the next election.

"We have gone a long way with industrial relations reforms," he said.

"The changes that went through last year were significant.

"They weren't unreasonable, they weren't radical but they were significant and we won't be taking further major proposals in that area to the next election."

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http://www.abc.net.au/news/newsitems/200603/s1587132.htm

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http://www.news.com.au/story/0,10117,18391557-29277,00.html
Comments?

[Monty Cantsin]

i just wrote and posted this for the E-Zine -
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The Neo-liberal Agenda Let Slip.

Senator Nick Minchin, leading member of the Australian federal government has been taped during a private meeting advocating further industrial relations reform if the liberal party is re-elected into another term.

"The fact is the great majority of Australians do not support what we are doing on industrial relation, they violently disagree," said Senator Minchin to HR Nicholls Society a far-right wing group intent of the dissolution of the current IR system in favour a ‘flexible system’. Amounting to an IR system where workers rights effectively mean ‘take it or leave it’, lowering minimum wages and conditions.

Minchin admits the average Australian ‘violently disagree’ with current IR reforms. which will remove such safety nets as unfair dismissal and further undermine unions and collective agreements. He further comments that "we do need to seek a mandate from the Australian people at the next election for another wave of industrial relations reform".

Howard was quick to dismiss the possibility of further IR changes. Furthermore Minchin publicly said that his statements regarding IR reform are personal views and do not represent the current thinking within the government. Opposition parties have not accepted this line of reasoning. Stephen Smith the Labor IR spokesman told ABC radio-

"Nick Minchin is the number three person in the government, he's the leader of the government in the Senate and what he's saying is before the government has even bedded down its unfair and extreme current round of industrial relations changes, it's planning a third wave,"

Smith continued- "It's quite clear he's gone to a meeting of people who he regards as friends and colleagues and he's told them the truth."

Labour leader Kim Beazley said of Minchin's comments - "We see from Senator Minchin that the Government intends to go through another round of IR changes to utterly create dictatorships in the workforce and workplace, against the interests of the average Australian,"

While Howard and Minchin have consistently held the line that the government has no plan for further IR, Environment Minister Ian Campbell has stated "I have said that more economic reform is something that is an absolute given".

Green’s senator Bob Brown views the latest revelations as a further indication of the liberal governments aim of introducing American style corporatism commenting, "The big corporations they want to remove all safeguards for workers in this country and this Government is saying, 'Stick with us - that's the direction we're headed'."

The question remains though, can the major opposition parties to the liberal government transcend the economic contradictions of corporate globalisation? Forcing competitors in the global market to reduce cost to remain competitive with other competitors requires that labour cost be reduced as much as possible. This contradicts the idea of maintaining current conditions for workers in Australia. Thus the problem of sustaining and improving workers rights and conditions are not just a local effort but a global struggle.