Submission to the Review of the Fair Work Act
29 February 2012
The Fair Work Act is not supporting Australian businesses to stay competitive in a particularly challenging economic environment.
This is the chief message of the Business Council of Australia submission to the government review of the Fair Work Act.
The submission, which is based on the direct experiences of BCA member companies, highlights issues of concern in five areas: competitiveness, productivity, enterprise focus, administration and timeliness, and job creation.
The BCA’s recommended areas for amendment include:
- improving the validity and efficiency of bargaining processes
- strengthening flexibility arrangements for both individuals and employers
- reducing the capacity for unnecessary industrial disruption by removing enablers in the legislation and providing employers with more capacity to respond
- improving the efficiency and predictability of Fair Work Australia decisions
- providing more efficient and timely outcomes on greenfield projects
- reducing the scope of the general protections (adverse action claims) to align with other anti-discrimination legislation.