Dept Gives Workers Short Shift

Date: 20 February 2003

The National Secretary of the Construction Union, Mr John Sutton today called for a Senate Inquiry into the failure of the Department of Employment and Workplace Relations to pursue money owed to workers under the amount of $10,000.

A paper released by the Royal Commission into the Building Industry on the 24th December says that the Department has a policy of not legally pursuing employers over amounts of less than $10,000 owed to a worker.

"Ten thousand dollars may not seem like a lot to Tony Abbott and his Department heads, but it is a lot of money to an ordinary worker and his family," Mr. Sutton said.

"There should be a Senate Inquiry into the failure of this Department to uphold the law when it comes to pursing money and entitlements owed to workers," Mr. Sutton said.

Mr. Sutton said that the Royal Commission paper acknowledged that most workers suffering underpayment of wages or loss of entitlement fell in the category of under $10,000.

"At a time when the Federal Minister is putting up legislation for tougher penalties against unions for breaching the Workplace Relations Act, his own department has a policy of not pursuing employers who break the law owing workers less than $10,000," Mr. Sutton said.

The policy of not acting for workers who had lost less than $10,000 covers the Federal Department and in all State and Territories to which the Federal Department has contracted out its enforcement role.

The Royal Commission paper also showed that, since 1996, the Federal Department had only taken court action against 2 people for breaches of federal awards or agreements across all industries in Victoria. In comparison, the NSW Department of Industrial Relations prosecuted 866 breaches of NSW workplace laws during 2000-2001.

"These figures show that the Federal Department under Tony Abbott is not interested in upholding the law when in comes to employer breaches. They sit on their hands, and do nothing about breaches of Federal Award or money owed to workers," Mr. Sutton said.

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Contact:	Elizabeth Lukin
Union:	Labor Council of NSW
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