Labour Market

Articles

Union lessons in BHP ruling
AFR Editorial, 12 January, 2001
This week’s Federal Court decision to reject union claims against BHP’s November 1999 offer of individual agreements to its iron ore workers could have significant implications for BHP’s productivity, the union movement and the workplace-relations policies of the major political parties in the forthcoming West Australian and federal elections.

Working poor should replace unemployed
(by Nina Field, AFR 4 October 1999).
Reports speech to Economists Conference criticising opponents of labor market deregulation and proposing alternative arrangements including the conversion of the AIRC into a voluntary mediation body.

Our poor made to suffer .
(Russel Rollason, AFR, 5 October 1999)
Attacks Des Moore's idea that working poor are better than enemployed poor.

Trade-off gives credit to those who just want to work (10 June 1999).One of the five economists and the executive director of the Business Council respond to Des Moore's critique of 2nd June of the wage/tax trade-off for low income earners.

Reith - The Frustrated Evangelist (21 May 1999). Discusses the role of Workplace Relations Minister, Peter Reith in promoting reform and the influence of Des Moore on his thinking.

Reith's reform targets the IRC (9/4/99). BRW writer Robert Skeffington argues that Reith's ideas for changing the legal basis of employer-employee relations could potentially diminish the power of the IRC. Quotes Des Moore as supporting the direction being taken by Reith.Quotes Democrat I/R spokesman, Senator Andrew Murray as agreeing that "The present system is really offensive -it's just unacceptable. We have to find a better mechanism".