LABOR HIDES IR FAILURES IN RHETORIC
02-February-2012
In the wake of stinging criticism of Australia’s industrial relations system and workplace culture from Toyota Australia President and Chief Executive, Max Yasuda, the newly installed Industry Minister Greg Combet simply chooses to bury his head in the sand rather than face up to some basic home truths.
A story in today’s Australian Financial Review attributes comments to Mr Yasuda on the impediment of workplace inflexibility and a workplace culture rife with underperformance, including absenteeism rates as high as 30 per cent in some parts of Toyota Australia’s plant.
Rather than tackle the serious issues raised by Mr Yasuda, Mr Combet issued the following rebuttal:
“What Mr Yasuda is saying is that he’s got a need to improve flexibility and productivity at his particular facility. We understand that,” Mr Combet told ABC Radio.
“But at the end of the day this is a Labor government.
“We support people through processes of change, we support fairness. We have a demonstrated record of supporting improved flexibility and improving productivity in our economy and that’s where we will focus.”
In other words Labor is not planning to undertake any meaningful reform of its failing industrial relations system under the Fair Work Act.
Mr Combet’s cold denial should come as no surprise; it follows this Government’s long history of failing to listen to industry.
Continuing this trend, a peak manufacturing body has been locked out of a Senate Committee hearing today on the Fair Work Amendment Bill.
Atrociously, the Senate Education, Employment and Workplace Relations Legislation Committee won't be calling upon the Council of Textile and Fashion Industries of Australia even though it is the peak body for the industry that is the subject of the Bill!
There’s no doubt that Labor is only interested in the views of ‘yes’ men from the unions rather than dealing with real problems raised by industry on workplace reforms.
Mr Combet should focus on the real problems facing the sharply declining manufacturing sector, which has shed around 130,000 jobs since mid-2008, rather than pandering to his old union boss mates.