_________________________________________________________________

FROM THE MINISTER FOR INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS

DATE: Thursday, April 27, 2000


LABOR STATES CONDEMN HOWARD GOVERNMENT’S APPROACH TO NATIONAL ENTITLEMENTS’ SCHEME

Labor Industrial Relations Ministers today called on the Howard Government to negotiate with the States to urgently establish a national employee entitlements’ scheme.

Attending a meeting of the Workplace Relations Ministers Council in Sydney, Labor Ministers said despite repeated requests, the Commonwealth has refused to enter into any meaningful dialogue on a national scheme.

“An ad hoc and inadequate taxpayer-funded scheme is clearly an inadequate approach for an issue of national importance,” the ministers said.

“The States have been presented with this so-called “interim” Peter Reith scheme on a ‘like it or lump it’ basis.

“Meanwhile, the Federal Government has had an inter-departmental taskforce looking at other options but is not talking about its findings.”

The ministers said the Reith interim scheme is inadequate on the following grounds:

· Inadequate in principle in that it draws on taxpayer funds which even the Federal Government’s own Treasurer, Peter Costello, has condemned. He said: “At the end of the day you’re asking taxpayers to pick up what is really the liability of employers.”;
· Inadequate for workers in that it limits payments to $20,000 or 29 weeks wages (whichever is the less) and is designed so that in many cases workers would be paid only a fraction of their entitlements;
· Inadequate in process – the refusal to take into account State Government concerns is arrogant and unacceptable.

“We again call on the Prime Minister and his Government to enter into meaningful discussion about the options for a national entitlements’ scheme which covers full entitlements,” the ministers said.

“We need a scheme that makes business pay, rather than making ordinary people pay through the tax system.

“The Prime Minister cobbled together a rescue package for his brother’s companies in record time. It’s time he gave all Australian workers similar attention, but with a scheme delivered after open debate about all the options.”