The Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) has welcomed the passage of the Fair Work Amendment (Protecting worker entitlements) Bill 2023.
The Bill, which was passed by Parliament in June, includes a number of measures to strengthen worker protections, including:
- Inserting the right to superannuation in the national employment standards. This means that all workers will be entitled to a minimum level of superannuation contributions, regardless of their employment status or the type of work they do;
- Improving unpaid parental leave rights. The number of flexible parental leave days has been increased from 30 to 100 days, and there is now more flexibility on how these days can be taken and shared between parents;
- Making clear that the Fair Work Act protections apply to temporary migrant workers. This means that temporary migrant workers will have the same rights and protections as other Australian workers, including the right to minimum wages, overtime pay, and annual leave;
ACTU President Michele O’Neil said that the passing of the Bill was a “big step forward in protecting workers’ rights.”
“Australia’s workplace laws need updating to protect workers from loopholes used by some big business to drive down wages and conditions. The passing of this bill is an important step forward in that process,” said O’Neil.
O’Neil also welcomed the inclusion of superannuation in the national employment standards.
“Superannuation has finally been recognised in our workplace laws as a universal workplace right. All workers, with their union, will be able to enforce their superannuation rights and recover super that has been stolen from them.
“Our workplace laws need to be fair and keep pace with changes in modern workplaces. We welcome these updates to our laws that bring increased security to workers.”