Working without a safety net - By Brad Norington, The Australian
ONE of the most prominent people to figure in debate this week over John Howard's plans to transform the Australian workplace has proved to be a ficticious young job seeker called Billy.
Presented as a case study in the Howard Government's 68-page booklet that details how proposed new industrial relations laws would work from next year, Billy is cast as a typical unemployed youth who applies for a full-time job as a shop assistant in a clothing store.
Under Howard's new WorkChoices system, the young man's prospective employer offers him a non-union individual contract called an Australian Workplace Agreement.
'Billy's' AWA Tells Real Story Of Government's IR Laws - No Public Holidays, Overtime, Penalty Rates, Breaks, Bonuses, Leave Loading, Allowances Or Unfair Dismissal Protection - Transport Workers Union of Australia
The Federal Government's own example of an Australian Workplace Agreement individual contract (AWA) that removes a worker's right to award entitlements that include public holidays, rest breaks, overtime, bonuses, annual leave loading, penalty rates & shift loadings tells the real story of the Government's industrial relations plans the ACTU said today.