The government’s proposed ‘worse off overall’ test will punish workers, further cut wages and undermine the recovery.
In a clear triumph of right-wing ideology and business self-interest over economic growth and the advice of the Reserve Bank, the government intends to directly undermine wages growth by locking in what will amount to a “worse off overall” test for the next two years for workers.
That’s the proper name for Christian “Public Bar” Porter’s proposal to allow businesses to cut wages in enterprise agreements based on a vague “public interest test” — with workers knowing they can be pushed back to award minimums if they fail to agree to them.
While references to Workchoices and its return have been a dime a dozen for the past twelve years, this proposal is straight from that ill-starred Howard government reform program that saw wages cut and labour productivity slump.
