Lid posted:

SMH posted:

'Shoppies' union face Senate probe over wages scandal

One of Labor's biggest backers, the giant shop assistants union, will be subject to a parliamentary inquiry over wage deals that have cost workers hundreds of millions of dollars.

The new Senate probe is a response to the wages scandal revealed by Fairfax Media involving deals between some of Australia's largest employers, including McDonald's, Coles and Woolworths and the Shop, Distributive & Allied Employees Association (SDA).

The inquiry will examine the lower penalty rates received by many workers employed by big business and whether the Fair Work Act needs to be changed to protect these workers from being paid less than the minimum rates of the award.

A 12-month Fairfax Media investigation revealed how the SDA deals with employers left more than 250,000 workers paid less than the award – the wages safety net – and saved big business more than an estimated $300 million a year.

Independent senator Nick Xenophon moved for the new inquiry, saying the cosy enterprise agreements with big employers had disadvantaged low-wage workers.

They had also provided an unfair advantage to big businesses by undercutting awards adhered to by smaller retailers, Senator Xenophon said.

On Monday the Government, Labor opposition and the Greens supported the Xenophon push, even though the SDA is Labor's largest affiliate and carries significant political weight within the ALP.

SDA rival, the Retail and Fast Food Workers Union (RAFFWU), was created at the end of 2016.

RAFFWU secretary Josh Cullinan, who helped expose the wages scandal, said he supported Senator Xenophon's inquiry but said it should not delay separate changes proposed by Greens workplace spokesman Adam Bandt.

"Workers are losing $1 million a day and that needs to be fixed immediately," Mr Cullinan said.

Mr Bandt has proposed changes to the Fair Work Act to protect workers from SDA-style wage deals that traded away penalty rates with inadequate compensation.

Such amendments would ensure workers on collective agreements have their pay compared to the minimum full rate of pay in the award – which includes casual loadings and penalty rates – rather than just the minimum base hourly rate. Mr Bandt's proposed legislation has been referred to a separate Senate inquiry.

In 2016, the full bench of the Fair Work Commission, in a landmark decision, quashed an agreement between Coles and the SDA as it underpaid workers and failed the 'better off overall test.'

Coles workers are now employed on an older agreement from 2011 which is currently being challenged by night-fill worker Penny Vickers in the Fair Work Commission.

Ms Vickers has launched a huge back-pay claim for tens of thousands of Coles workers and wants them to be paid award rates. The Commission recently agreed to give her access to Coles internal documents, a move opposed by the supermarket.

She has argued Coles had misled workers and the Commission on whether workers were paid above the award.

Coles has denied this but recently a lawyer for the supermarket conceded in the Commission that about half the workforce was paid less than the award.

Opposition workplace spokesman Brendan O'Connor said if there was a need for change to the better-off overall test, Labor would consider it.

"Labor introduced the 'better-off overall test' after the former Liberal Government's WorkChoices abolished any fairness test, if the test needs to be strengthened then Labor will examine it."

Employment minister Michaelia Cash attacked Labor's position.

"Mr Shorten and the union movement have no problem when big unions and big corporates do deals to cut Sunday rates, but pretend to be outraged when such rates are reduced for small businesses by the independent Fair Work Commission."

Lid posted:

Clive Palmer has defended taking his family and friends on an expensive Mediterranean cruise a month after complaining of health problems during a court hearing.

The former federal MP appeared at a federal court hearing in Brisbane in May clutching a vomit bag and using a breathing apparatus and a pillow while giving evidence to liquidators of his Queensland Nickel company.

Photos emerged on Monday showing Palmer and his family boarding the 24-day, $10,000-a-head cruise in Spain.

Ler posted:

Some poo poo going on in NSW Greens, again. This time from a now former member, Jarah Crook.
I feel like I met him or he was a member here....any one know him?

Bogan King posted:

https://twitter.com/Asher_Wolf/status/876695493882953729

Anidav posted:

How about we form a real socialist party. Some sort of socialist alternative...

hooman posted:

The governor of the Reserve Bank has called on workers to start demanding large pay rises from their bosses.

https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2017/jun/19/rise-up-and-demand-pay-increases-reserve-bank-chief-urges-workers

adamantium|wang posted:

Spotted this morning in Bella Vista:



I guess HH was already taken.

BBJoey posted:

how about we disband NSW greens and start again

Frogfingers posted:

Simple solution: ACT annexes all of NSW, then give statehood to NT.

Frogfingers posted:

Simple solution: ACT annexes all of NSW, then give statehood to NT.

Bogan King posted:

We know how to keep it classy

Bogan King posted:

Heard the apology earlier. Was refreshing to hear an apology not a sorry your offended.

-----------------------------

Christians are being poo poo and the government is covering for them [SMH]

Bogan King posted:

Victoria laying the foundations to become the worst state.

quote:

When the law says police can search you without a warrant

The police officer does not need a warrant to search you in a public place if they reasonably suspect you:

have illegal drugs
have things that can explode or ignite
have guns or weapons like knives, imitation guns, knuckle-dusters or nunchakus
are in an area where a lot of violent crime happens (they can use this fact to show they have reasonable grounds to search you)
have something that could be used to make graffiti, for example, spray paint, gouging tool or even a texta.

quote:

Searches in public 'designated areas'

The police can search people for weapons in public areas which have become designated areas. They have a lot of search powers within these areas. The police:

do not need a warrant
do not need to have any reasonable grounds to suspect you are carrying a weapon
can search you, your bags and your car for weapons
can do searches in a designated area for up to 12 hours.

Gorilla Salad posted:

How much more power do they need?

gay picnic defence posted:

there's been like three whole pages and no one has mentioned mia freedman, what the gently caress happened?

gay picnic defence posted:

there's been like three whole pages and no one has mentioned mia freedman, what the gently caress happened?

gay picnic defence posted:

there's been like three whole pages and no one has mentioned mia freedman, what the gently caress happened?

adamantium|wang posted:

Spotted this morning in Bella Vista:



I guess HH was already taken.