Opposition leader Bill Shorten has dismissed a critique of Labor’s wages policy, describing the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of WA as a trade union for employers and insisting wage increases were sensible.
Opposition leader Bill Shorten has dismissed a critique of Labor’s wages policy, describing the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of WA as a trade union for employers and insisting wage increases were sensible.
Mr Shorten's comments follow a CCI survey of 255 of its members, which found many would lay-off workers, cut hours or delay hiring new staff if wages went up by 5 per cent.
The survey followed an ACTU proposal to increase the minimum wage by 11 per cent over two years.
CCI chief executive Chris Rodwell said federal Labor had flirted with backing the ACTU’s proposal but needed to consider the WA jobs that would be lost if they proceeded.
Asked today about the CCI survey and his association with militant maritime and construction unions, Mr Shorten went on the attack.
“I reject the fairy tales spun by the vested interests of big business which says that reasonable wage rises cause economic dislocation,” Mr Shorten told a media conference in Perth.
“Let’s be straight about this. Corporate profits have gone up in Australia by 45 per cent in the last four years, average wages in the country have gone up by 8 per cent.
“That isn’t fair, it’s not how the system should work.
“Now the chamber you quoted, they are a trade union of employers so it’s not really a news story that the representative for employers says ‘please don’t increase wages’.
“That’s what they are paid to say.”
Mr Shorten cited an ad in yesterday’s Australian Financial Review, in which 124 economists said “we need to get wages moving in this country”.
He also cited Reserve Bank governor Philip Lowe.
“The Reserve Bank governor, and I don’t think you could call him a friend to the MUA (Maritime Union of Australia), he has said that we need to move on wages,” Mr Shorten added.
Mr Lowe said early this month that the stronger labour market across Australia has led to some pick-up in wages growth, which he described as a welcome development.
“The improvement in the labour market should see some further lift in wages growth over time, although this is still expected to be a gradual process,” Mr Lowe said.
Mr Shorten described Labor’s policy on wages as sensible.
“Wage stagnation is no doubt one of the principal economic problems in this country,” he said.
“We think we’ve got to get wages moving a bit more, so we have said we will reverse the penalty rates cut, we are going to clamp down on dodgy labour hire practices.
“We want subcontractors, independent contractors, small businesses that get ripped off by bigger contractors, we want to give them more legal protection.
“We’ve got a plan to get wages moving for small business, for workers and for contractors.
“I think this is sensible because in the current climate, we have anaemic domestic demand and if people aren’t getting wage rises, they are not spending money in the High Street and confidence shrinks and evaporates.”
The CCI survey found that 44 per cent of businesses would delay hiring new staff if their wage bill increased by 5 per cent, while 47 per cent would reduce the hours of existing staff.
About one third of respondents would lay-off workers.
“At a time when WA has the equal highest unemployment rate in 17 years at 6.8 per cent, federal Labor needs to consider the WA jobs that would be lost if they proceed with this proposal,” CCI chief executive Chris Rodwell said.
“Federal Labor must recognise that the east coast of Australia and WA are experiencing very different trading conditions and implementing the living wage proposal would be blind to these differences.
“It is critical that any future federal government considers the unique circumstances of WA and does not base their policies simply on the economic health of NSW and Victoria.”
