The federal government has resolved to a one-off increase in how much pensioners will be allowed to work before it affects their fortnightly payments, as the two-day national jobs summit ends.
Key points:
- The two-day jobs summit convened to boost wages and productivity has concluded
- The government has committed to easing earning limits on pensioners
- The government will also reform workplace bargaining, though a final agreement has not been reached
Pensioners will be able to earn an additional $4,000 this financial year without losing any of their pension, on top of the $480 fortnightly earning limit that currently applies.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers said the move would "encourage older Australians to work a bit more if they want to", and would cost an additional $55 million.
While the commitment was new, the Treasurer said Labor had been working on the proposal since before the election.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said his government had agreed to 36 "immediate" initiatives as a consequence of discussions with industry, unions and others at the jobs summit.
"I'm incredibly heartened by the spirit of cooperation that was in evidence across the room," Mr Albanese said.
"They haven't come here to dig a deeper trench on the same old battlefield."
Earlier, the government announced it had reached agreement with unions and business groups on an increase to migration numbers from the jobs summit, lifting the ceiling of the permanent migration program to 195,000 places this financial year.
Those places will be available to workers in areas with critical skills shortages.
Extended visas and relaxed work restrictions for international students will also be implemented, along with extra money to clear the backlog of visas waiting to be processed.
More than half a billion dollars will be invested in the National Housing Infrastructure Facility for social and affordable housing, and reforms will be made to attract private capital finance.
The government has also agreed with state and territory governments to jointly provide an additional $1 billion to fund fee-free TAFE education and the acceleration of 465,000 fee-free placements.
Finance Minister Katy Gallagher celebrated the equal representation of men and women among delegates at the jobs summit, and said several outcomes to improve pay equality were reached.
Businesses with more than 500 employees will be required to commit to measurable targets to improve gender equality, and the Workplace Gender Equality Agency will also begin collecting data on the pay gap, specifically for First Nations and culturally diverse women, as well as women living with a disability.
Government promises to reform workplace bargaining
The government has also committed to reforming workplace agreements, saying the current enterprise bargaining system was failing to boost productivity or lift wages.
"The aim of our industrial relations system has to be about two things: one, boosting the economy by lifting productivity; secondly, lifting living standards by boosting wages," Mr Albanese said.
Mr Albanese acknowledged unions and business had not reached an agreement on reforming enterprise bargaining, but said they agreed that it needed to be fixed.
In a statement, the head of the Australian Council of Trade Unions, Sally McManus, said progress had been made at the summit, but now "the hard work begins".
"The summit has made clear the urgent need for action to make bargaining simpler, fairer and more accessible. Without change, wages will continue to go backwards," Ms McManus said.
Workplace Relations Minister Tony Burke said the government would legislate flexible options for negotiating agreements, as well as amending the Better Off Overall Test, which prevents agreements if they leave any employee worse off.
The current test has been criticised for being too easy to fail, as a single hypothetical employee who may be worse off under a new bargaining agreement can be enough to shut down a deal.
Mr Burke said the Fair Work Act would also be changed to allow the Fair Work Commission to proactively engage in negotiations with business and unions to help reach agreements.
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2022-09-02 06:33:45Z
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