Labour hire workers in line for boost to wages

Thousands of labour-hire employees are set for a pay rise after new workplace laws come into effect.

The federal government’s ‘same job, same pay’ laws kick in from Friday, which will see labour-hire workers paid the same as employees hired directly by the company.

The first pay agreements to be approved by the Fair Work Commission under the changes will include wage rises for more than 2000 cabin crew on airlines, about 200 meat workers and more than 350 miners.

Workplace Minister Murray Watt said the industrial relations change would help to get wages moving.

“There is a legitimate place for labour hire, especially to address surge or seasonal workforce needs, but the labour hire loophole has been used for far too long to undermine agreed wages and our reform will put an end to this for good,” he said.

“These workers are doing the same work, wearing the same uniforms and turning up to the same shifts week after week, yet are paid significantly less than other staff they work alongside.”

A further 40 pay agreements are already in the pipeline for the Fair Work Commission to approve.

Among the agreements already to come into effect, labour hire workers employed by Qantas will have pay rises of up to 28 per cent.

ACTU secretary Sally McManus said the workplace laws would help to end long-standing practices by large companies.

“Pay rises for working people are the reason why some companies abused labour hire as a way of cutting wages,” she told AAP.

“It means in the future workers won’t have to go through the situation where they are working alongside others and do the same work but for less pay.”

Ms McManus said there was still concern within the union about large companies fighting looming pay rises for labour hire workers in the courts.

“A lot of cashed-up employers would like this loophole back open and are lobbying political parties with a federal election coming up,” she said.

“While others are agreeing (to the laws) and doing the right thing, others want to fight and will go all the way to the High Court because they can and they’ve got the money.

“They want to use financial advantage to at least delay it for their workplaces in the hope there will be a change of government.”

The coalition has promised it would review Labor’s industrial relations changes, should they win government at the next election, which is due to be held by May.

Federal secretary of the Flight Attendants’ Association of Australia Teri O’Toole said the wage rise was a critical step.

“Some of our cabin crew can earn significantly less than directly employed crew despite doing the same job, all because they are technically employed by a labour hire company,” she said.

“These first wave of pay rises for our members will go a long way in restoring dignity to our profession.”