Employer and employer association matters in Australia in 2020

Abstract

The emphasis of employers and employer associations, when 2020 began, was largely business as usual. With the pandemic’s advent, employers and associations reoriented some industrial relations activity, which encouraged cooperation while also highlighting sharp divisions. As the year progressed, however, it became increasingly apparent that the federal government’s responses to the pandemic provided unanticipated opportunities for the employer movement to push intensively their long-expressed desires for changes to the institutional structures of industrial relations, and hence also bargaining and other processes. This article examines these and other activities which preoccupied employers and their associations in 2020 while also analysing some broader environmental, social and governance challenges affecting employer groups, which impact on their purpose and place within the employer movement more generally.

Employer and employer association matters in 2021

“…360-365). In their review, Thornthwaite and Sheldon (2021) also noted an emerging rift among EAs. During 2021, these rifts became more evident.…”

“…The 'defensive actions' reported by Thornthwaite and Sheldon (2021:358) regarding wage theft continue in 2021, though the industries of focus have changed. While the food, hospitality and retail sectors have taken much of the public eye (Thornthwaite & Sheldon 2021;Sheldon & Thornthwaite 2020), in 2021, it appears that Building and Construction and the Higher Education (namely Universities) were a keen area of focus. Indeed the Fair Work Ombudsman expressed its concern that the scale of wage underpayment by universities was potentially preventing the investigation of underpayment in other industries (Carey, 2021).…”

“…In last year's annual review, Thornthwaite and Sheldon (2021) categorised employer association (EA) actions as either proactive or defensive in relation to defined sets of issues. One set of issues revolves around what they refer to as an apparently 'insatiable desire' to reform the industrial relations (IR) system in ways that afford employers everincreasing amounts of flexibility.…”

“…EA support for the Commonwealth Government's proposals for IR change (popularly known as the IR Omnibus Bill), and their subsequent posturing for more reform in the wake of the outcome of this process, is the leading item in this year's review, and is further evidence of this type of the EA behaviour. Thornthwaite and Sheldon (2021) also identified the second set of actions are aimed at defending, or at least not calling out, the business community in response to various actions that have undermined what these authors refer to as the employers' social licence. Many of these actions fall under the broader label of corporate social responsibility, but there are also specific IR matters such as the use of sham contracts, exploitation of vulnerable workers and systematic wage underpayments across many industries.…”

“…2. As summarised byThornthwaite and Sheldon (2021) JobKeeper represents a wage subsidy scheme through which employers were encouraged to keep staff working throughout the pandemic, and JobSeeker represented a new language for unemployment benefits. JobMaker…”