Australian Unions Secretary Sally McManus has made an impassioned plea to the Committee for Economic Development in Australia that workers need to lead the economic recovery.
In a speech at their recent conference to discuss the economic challenges facing Australians post-pandemic, McManus said that “some employers would like to see permanent cuts to workers’ rights, permanent cuts to working take home pay”.
This statement was made in the context of attacks to penalty rates, wage growth and job permanency that was occurring in the context of COVID-19.
“These are not just extremely dangerous for the economy coming out of a recession and will deeply damage confidence, we will not have the legacy of this pandemic reverberate onto the next generation”.
She indicated that young people and women would be the hardest hit by these attacks on workers rights, particularly since the pandemic has hit industries dominated by these two groups the hardest.
“You can’t cut your way to recovery. Australian workers know this. We are keen to partner with anyone who understands that the only way to build a stronger economy is also about making it a fairer economy”.
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