April 21 May

Unions are urging the Morrison Government to bring in JobKeeper 2 – available for all workers and with safeguards to prevent the business rorts we saw last year – to give Australian workers, and the small businesses that employ them, a safety net.

Current COVID-19 disaster payment schemes are not sufficient or fit-forpurpose, and do not provide a crucial connection for the worker to their employer.

ACTU President Michele O’Neil said the current COVID-19 disaster payment system did not work for a crisis like this. “Limiting eligibility to people who live or work in a hotspot doesn’t take into account that jobs and industries across the whole country are affected now and will be affected for a long time into the future,” she said. “There is no more compelling reason to bring in JobKeeper 2 than seeing a loss of so many hours worked and jobs in one month alone. And thanks to the shambolic vaccine rollout, it could likely get worse before it gets better. “Unions have been warning the Morrison Government for months; bring in JobKeeper 2 or Australia’s insecure job crisis will worsen. There is an urgent need for a recovery plan for areas, workers and sectors hit hard.”

Morrison continues to choose talk over actions

The National Summit on Women’s Safety has concluded without the Morrison Government committing to enact all 55 recommendations of the Respect@Work report or legislate for 10 days paid Family and Domestic Violence leave.

Two days of contribution from experts, victims and advocates will come to nothing unless the Morrison Government starts living up to its rhetoric on sexual harassment and violence against women.

Despite claims in the summit’s concluding statement that the way forward is cooperation between unions, employers and government, no representatives of working people were invited to address the summit.

ACTU President Michele O’Neil (pictured right) said Prime Minister Morrison repeatedly stated that his government would act on all 55 recommendations of the Respect@Work report. She said the federal government had only implemented six, voting against amendments which would have implemented all the legal changes recommended by the Sex Discrimination Commissioner, including the critical positive duty on employers to prevent sexual harassment.

“This government doesn’t need more reports or summits to know what do to for working women – they are already ignoring the majority of recommendations in the extensive national report that they commissioned,” Ms O’Neil said. “It is time to act to make workplaces safer for women.

“Family and domestic violence is a national crisis. It costs up to $20,000 and takes 140 hours to flee an abusive relationship, which means that paid leave from work is essential.

“The Morrison Government must urgently legislate for 10 days paid family and domestic violence leave in the National Employment Standards. “This summit promised action on workplace sexual harassment and gendered violence, but the Government has instead delivered a carefully politically controlled event, excluded the representatives of working women and failed to commit to act urgently to deliver Respect@Work and the universal right to paid Family and Domestic Violence Leave.”

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