WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as
introduced and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest
does not have any official legal status. Other sources should be
consulted to determine the subsequent official status of the
Bill.
CONTENTS
Reform of Employment Services (Consequential Provisions)
Bill 1996
Date Introduced: 12 December 1996
House: Senate
Portfolio: Employment, Education, Training and
Youth Affairs
Commencement: On the day on which the Reform of
Employment Services Bill 1996 commences (ie. 1 December 1997)
The Bill will amend a number of Acts as a consequence of the
proposals contained in the Reform of Employment Services Bill 1996
to allow greater private participation in the provision of services
to the unemployed. The main amendments relate to the repeal of the
Employment Services Act 1994 and bringing certain actions
within the scope of Commonwealth privacy and freedom of information
laws.
Refer to the Digest for the Reform of Employment Services Bill
1996.
The Employment Services Act 1994 (the Act) established
a case management system for long term unemployed and introduced
private case management. Many of the provisions of the Act are
similar, although not as extensive, as those proposed by the Reform
of Employment Services Bill 1996 (RES Bill).The scheme established
by the Act will be replaced by those contained in the RES Bill, and
as a result, Part 1 of Schedule 1 of the Bill will
repeal the Act.
The Act also established the Employment Services Regulatory
Authority (ESRA) which had the main functions of regulating case
management, promoting competition in the provision of case
management and monitoring the operation of the case management
system. As with the rest of the Act, the RES Bill, if passed, will
make ESRA redundant as other institutions (the Employment
Secretary) will be responsible for the management of private case
management. While Part 1 of Schedule 1 will
abolish ESRA, Part 2 of the Schedule contains
transitional provisions relating to the transfer of ESRAs assets,
liabilities and contracts to the Commonwealth. Specifically:
- Item 3 of Part 2 of Schedule 1 will transfer
the assets and liabilities of ESRA to the Commonwealth;
- Item 4 will substitute the Commonwealth,
rather than ESRA, in any contract to which ESRA is a party;
and
- Item 5 will allow regulations to be made
relating to the repeal of the Act.
Part 3 of the Bill will amend a number of Acts
as a result of the abolition of ESRA and the transfer of functions
to the Employment Secretary. The amendments have no policy
implications.
Similarly, the amendments contained in Schedule
2 of the Bill have no direct policy implications but
relate to the introduction of private employment providers. More
important provisions of Schedule 2 relate to:
- bringing employment service providers within the scope of the
Freedom of Information Act 1982 for actions undertaken
under the proposed Reform of Employment Services Act 1996;
- allowing the Commonwealth Ombudsman to refer matters to the
Employment Secretary where the Ombudsman considers this a more
appropriate course of action than investigating the complaint (this
reflects the power of the Employment Secretary to refer matters to
the Ombudsman); and
- bringing actions taken by a Minister relating to the provision
of employment services under the proposed Employment Services
Reform Act 1996 under the ambit of the Privacy Act
1988.
Chris Field
27 February 1997
Bills Digest Service
Information and Research Services
This Digest does not have any official legal status. Other
sources should be consulted to determine whether the Bill has been
enacted and, if so, whether the subsequent Act reflects further
amendments.
IRS staff are available to discuss the paper's contents
with Senators and Members and their staff but not with members of
the public.
ISSN 1323-9031
Commonwealth of Australia 1996
Except to the extent of the uses permitted under the
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of the Australian Parliament in the course of their official
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Published by the Department of the Parliamentary Library,
1997.
This page was prepared by the Parliamentary Library,
Commonwealth of Australia
Last updated: 8 April 1997
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