What will the Labor Jobs Summit bring?
The beginning of September saw the Jobs Summit return to Australia. A hot topic of concern and discussion was the continuation of Australia’s ongoing fall in wage growth. Recent ABS statistics showed wage growth of 2.5 per cent this year, but with inflation at 7.75 per cent, the rise isn’t translating into a benefit for employees. The government hopes that many decisions will help relieve mounting pressures. Productivity will always be at the heart of higher incomes.
One consideration could be getting women back into the workforce and reducing their contribution to unpaid care. If female participation in the workforce matched men’s, the economy could be 8.7 per cent larger by 2050. The pandemic has pushed back decades of reducing gender pay gaps which have begun widening again. The drop in female participation coincides with women working in hospitality, retail and tourism jobs and unpaid labour during the pandemic.
Helen Dalley-Fisher, Equality Rights Alliance’s Secretariat, explained at the Jobs Summit, “We can’t keep asking women to babysit the economy”. In the new financial year, budgets should include a $5 billion childcare subsidy plan to support families with a combined income of up to AU$80,000, which will afford tangible economic benefits. For every AU$1 invested, the country’s GDP is boosted by nearly AU$2. Specialists understand the need to support women in the workplace but also realise it is a family concern. Organisations need to leverage untapped talent. There is a need to refresh the timeworn nine-to-five, five-day-a-week model. It was designed by men, for men. One such way of accommodating female representation is to encourage flexible working methods and focus on output alone. It’s essential to have senior-level females, encourage hybrid working plans, and improve mandated in-office days.
2009 saw the introduction of the Better Off Overall Test (BOOT). This multi-employer bargaining tool allows unions to strike agreements for workers in the same industry but across different organisations. There is, however, a need to simplify the process to make it fair and flexible for workers and make a difference to companies employing people and meeting pay increase demands in the future. There are concerns though that a one-size-fits-all approach will damage industry and potentially encourage strike activity across sectors. Industry leaders want more details released about those in low-income jobs for a sense of understanding and what a wide-scale approach looks like rather than the current-day ignorance of workplace evolution. The agreements need to be relevant and support the genuine needs of businesses and employees. Legislation could be introduced as early as the end of 2022.
At the 2022 Job Summit, Home Affairs Minister Clare O’Neil announced an increase of 35,000 visas for highly skilled migrants bringing it to an overall 195,000. Additional visas will ensure a better migration mix to support labour market demands. People on Working Holiday Maker (WHM) visas will help bolster the hospitality, agriculture and tourism sectors during the holiday seasons. To safeguard Australia’s economy, companies need to take stock of the labour market and understand current and emerging future risks. The pandemic has left the country many thousands of workers short for the short term. There are concerns that relying on temporary visa holders will lead to a low-skilled guest worker society. It’s important to train local workforces and encourage overseas skills through permanent migration programmes. Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said to delegates at the summit. “We want to see more Australians gaining the skills they need to find good jobs, in areas of national priority”.
