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PM refuses to guarantee new parent leave
In what could be the last test case it ever hears, the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) yesterday granted 1.6 million workers on federal awards the right to ask for part-time employment until their children go to school. The workers also won the right to seek an extension of unpaid parental leave from 12 months to 24 months, and 10 days' leave each year to care for sick family members. But Prime Minister John Howard said last night the decision did not mean workers automatically had the right to take up to two years of parental leave. Employers did not have to grant the leave, he said "What the industrial relations commission did today was to confer upon employees under awards the right to ask for those things - they didn't confer those things unconditionally, what the IRC said was you can ask for those things and an employer is only obliged to give them if he is able to do so and it doesn't result in inefficiencies or unreasonable costs."
"This would be ... a great start for Australian families but John Howard intends to knobble them at the very start of a decent outcome that will in the long run make things easier for Australian families, he's got a chance here to reverse (his) course. He's got a chance to say, very firmly, I believe in what the IRC has decided and I'll ensure that my legislation permits it to stick." Employers can refuse workers' requests on grounds related to the effect on the workplace or their business due to lack of replacement staff, loss of efficiency and the impact on customer service. Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews said the government would consider the conditions granted by the AIRC, but he would not say whether they would be added to the minimum conditions to be part of new workplace laws expected in October. Sitting in Melbourne today, the full bench of the AIRC handed down a cautious decision on the new family provisions sought by the ACTU after a test case that began in June 2003. It said there should be greater flexibility in awards for workers to request leave and conditions to suit their family responsibilities. The decision affects all workers on federal awards plus many more whose conditions are underpinned by awards. |
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Millions
of Australian workers have won the right to ask for extra parental leave, but
the victory could be short-lived with the Howard government refusing to
guarantee the leave provisions will be enshrined in its new workplace laws.
