Electricity Privatisation – Submission to Senate Inquiry
Despite claims about the economic advantages of privatisation made by the NSW Liberal Government, the privatisation agenda of the last three decades has resulted in cuts
to public services, finalisation of few large scale infrastructure projects and an
ongoing budget deficit.
Paid Parental Leave, Submission to Senate Inquiry
Unions NSW is vocal in the campaign for universal paid parental leave (PPL) that is
guaranteed through government legislation and paid at wage replacement rates for 6 months. Access to PPL provides the best outcomes for new parents and babies while also encouraging women’s increased participation in the workforce.
NSW Budget Briefing 2018
The NSW Liberal/National Government delivered a classic ‘election budget’ with short-term spending announcements and limited commitments to recurring expenditure for services and staffing.
Temporary Work Visas – Submission to Senate Inquiry
NSW believes temporary work visas should be built around a framework that provides workers with a timely and accessible mechanism to lodge claims against exploitative employers and are paid on par with local workers.
Unpaid Work Placements – Submission to NSW Inquiry
Unpaid work such as internships, need effective regulation and enforcement to ensure they promote learning and development opportunities. Unions NSW believes all forms of unpaid work should be covered by a national code of practice, enforceable through the Fair Work Commission.
Future of work and workers – Submission to Senate Inquiry
The pace and scale of changes in work are impossible to accurately predict. It is the role of Government to ensure we enter the uncertainty of the future well prepared; to ensure the benefits of technological advancement can be shared fairly and safeguards are put in place to ensure technology isn’t used as a tool to undermine pay and working conditions.
Avoidance of the Fair Work Act – Submission to Senate Inquiry
The nature of work, technology and trading hours have changed significantly since our industrial relations framework was established. However, there are ample provisions for employers to accommodate the needs of the ‘modern workforce’ built into the Fair Work Act. Deliberate attempts by employers to avoid the Fair Work Act to meet the needs of their business and promote ‘efficiency’ are lazy and often driven by greed and profit.
Airtasker report
A case study into the employment practices and employment conditions available to workers who use the online platform Airtasker.
Political Freedoms - Submission to Federal Inquiry
Unions NSW is concerned by state or federal government attempts to place restrictions on the implied freedom of political communication by seeking to restrict the spending of specific groups of third party campaigners during election periods. Such a move would be contrary to the principles of supporting the current freedoms associated with people’s right to participate in the democratic process of elections and would burden the implied freedom of political communication.
Political Donations - Submission to NSW Inquiry
Unions NSW response to the NSW Government’s 2014 Panel of Experts on political donations.