Federal takeover of industrial relations and education

By Maree O’Halloran

A national system of industrial relations and a national set of education policies becomes far more likely now that the Federal Government will control the Senate.

The Federal Howard Government's current attack on workers and public education is clever because it taps into a prevailing view that Australia is over-governed with three tiers of government. Under the guise of a legitimate debate about the future system of governing Australia, a radical attack on the rights of all workers, including teachers, and a radical attack on public education has been launched by the Howard Government.

It is no mistake that the first areas chosen to spearhead the Coalition's new found belief in national government, vis-à-vis states' rights, are these areas that form the basis for an egalitarian, cohesive and democratic society: industrial relations and education.

For example, the Federal Government's Australian Technical Colleges crystallise the Government's industrial relations and education agenda in one fell swoop. Australian Technical Colleges further privatise our education system and have the potential to damage the enrolments and course offerings of nearby high schools. Performance pay and individual employment contracts are supposedly to be a hallmark of the colleges.

The launch of the Federal Government's radical industrial relations plans came on February 25 in a speech by Employment and Workplace Relations Minister Kevin Andrews to the Committee for Economic Development of Australia. He said in part:

"In the 21st century there is simply no logic in the current competing and complex state and federal systems or in 'futile gestures' by state premiers to preserve such an absurd situation.
"I am absolutely convinced that the Government must take this once-in-a generation opportunity to put in place a contemporary and national workplace relations system able to meet Australia's longer term economic and social goals."

The Federal Government intends to take over the state-based industrial relations system and introduce a national system which has at its heart the economic imperative to drive down labour costs so business can increase their share of national prosperity.

A Workers Online editorial on February 25 has described the "reform proposals" as including:

"*legalising the rights of employers to sack workers unfairly;
"*'reviewing' the minimum wage to make it harder for low paid workers to get a pay rise;
"*promoting union-busting campaigns by neutering the industrial umpire to create a system where employer lock-outs of unionised workers is rife; and
"*aggressively spreading individual contracts to make the lives of Australian workers putty in the hands of their managers."

If the Federal Government is successful, our awards would be stripped. For example, the current provision for preparation time and limitations on face-to-face teaching could be lost, along with many other conditions.

Workers who are casual or non-unionised will be completely vulnerable, trying to "bargain" alone with their employers.

On February 24 NSW Premier Bob Carr began an offensive against the Federal Government's plans and stated: "I will have more to say in the coming months about what our nurses would lose, what our teachers would lose, what our emergency services would lose, what our police would lose if the state system were abolished."

The Premier's defence of fair industrial relations is welcome and laudable. His defence of our working conditions is also welcome. While teachers remember that his Government launched an award-stripping exercise in 1999, Federation welcomes the fact that his current statements would hinder the Government/Department of Education and Training from such an approach in the next award.

NSW Industrial Relations Minister John Della Bosca has promised to highlight the dangers of the Federal Government's proposals and mount constitutional challenges in the High Court.

For Federation members, the industrial relations changes are being mooted at the same time as Prime Minister John Howard and Federal Education Minister Brendan Nelson attack the values and educational standards of public schools as well as the professionalism of public education teachers. This is in addition to their grossly unfair funding policies and their linking of federal funding to practices such as public reporting of teachers' professional development and leave as well as deregulated staffing.

The conjunction of the "reform" proposals for industrial relations and education mean that Federation must be at the forefront of opposing the changes. Federation is currently working with the broader union movement to develop an education, media and action plan to confront this issue.

Maree O'Halloran is the President.

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