Report

Corporate Avoidance of the Fair Work Act

6 September 2017

© Commonwealth of Australia 2017
ISBN 978-1-76010-633-1

View the report as a single document - (PDF 1450KB)


View the report as separate downloadable parts:

Membership of the Committee (PDF 20KB)
Recommendations (PDF 42KB)
Chapter 1 (PDF 28KB)

Conduct of the inquiry
Structure of the report
Note on references
Acknowledgement

Chapter 2 - Fair work (PDF 122KB)

Australia's Fair Work system
Coverage of the system
Key features of the Fair Work system
The Fair Work Commission
The Fair Work Ombudsman
Is the Fair Work system fit for purpose?

Chapter 3 - Employers undermining collective bargaining (PDF 90KB)

Small cohorts of workers signing agreements
Committee view
Use of subsidiaries for agreement approval
Casual employees
Equal work for equal pay
Workers residing overseas
When negotiations reach impasse

Chapter 4 - Saving the silver: termination of enterprise agreements (PDF 108KB)

Agreement termination under the FWA
Agreement termination as economic coercion
Griffin Coal, Collie
Parmalat
Esso Australia
Does agreement termination constitute avoidance of the FWA?
Committee view

Chapter 5 - Labour hire (PDF 129KB)

The growth of labour hire
Disposable workers
Carlton & United Breweries
CUB55 in their own words
Oxford Cold Storage
Industry perspectives
Committee view

Chapter 6 - Wage theft (PDF 108KB)

The prevalence of underpayment
From the workers' perspective
Underpayment of temporary migrant workers
International students
Committee view
Penalties for non-compliance
Committee view

Chapter 7 - Sham contracting (PDF 230KB)

The effect on workers
Inadequacies in the legislation
Committee view
Taxation incentives
Committee view

Chapter 8 - The gig economy: hyper flexibility or sham contracting? (PDF 415KB)

The rise of the gig economy
Who is the employer?
Deliveroo
Airtasker
Disruptive employment
The way forward
Committee view

Chapter 9 - Broader implications of corporate avoidance of the Fair Work Act (PDF 103KB)

Wage stagnation
Committee view and conclusion

Coalition Senators' Dissenting Report (PDF 41KB)

History
Labour hire companies
Penalty rates
Conclusion

Appendix 1 - Submissions and additional information (PDF 35KB)

Submissions
Additional information
Tabled documents
Answers to questions on notice

Appendix 2 - Public Hearings (PDF 20KB)

Committee Secretariat contact:

Committee Secretary
Senate Education and Employment Committees
PO Box 6100
Parliament House
Canberra ACT 2600

Phone: +61 2 6277 3521
eec.sen@aph.gov.au