Sage Journals: Discover world-class research

Abstract

Australian labour market and industrial relations policies are poised for fundamental change. A combination of political and macroeconomic factors has created a historic opportunity to turn away from the individualised, market-driven labour market policy that has prevailed since the 1980s, in favour of a more interventionist and egalitarian approach. Factors contributing to this moment include the breakdown of bipartisan consensus around key neoliberal precepts; growing public anger over inequality, insecure work and stagnant wages; and a weakening of macroeconomic conditions. Australia’s labour market is now marked by underutilisation of labour in various forms, a deterioration in job quality (especially the growth of insecure and precarious work) and unprecedented weakness in wages. The deterioration in job quality and distributional outcomes is the long-term legacy of the post-1980s shift away from Australia’s earlier tradition of equality-seeking institutional structures and regulatory practices. The current malaise in labour markets should be confronted with a comprehensive strategy to both increase the quantity of work available to Australian workers and improve its quality. The major components of such a strategy are identified, and their prospects considered, in light of the economic and political forces reshaping Australia’s labour market.

JEL Codes: J28, J38, J53, J58, J83

Keywords

Australia collective bargaining inequality insecure work labour market policy reform neoliberalism precarious work wage stagnation

Get full access to this article

View all access options for this article.

References

Allegretto

Godoey

Nadler

et al (2018) The New Wave of Local Minimum Wage Policies: Evidence from Six Cities. Berkeley, CA: Center on Wage and Employment Dynamics. Available at: http://irle.berkeley.edu/the-new-wave-of-local-minimum-wage-policies-evidence-from-six-cities/ (accessed 9 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (1982) Year book Australia, 1982. Cat. No. 1301.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/ausstats/abs@.nsf/a866861f12e106e0ca256a38002791fa/fdabf8f7f30bb393ca2573aa0003bb65!OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018a) Australian national accounts: finance and wealth, Sep 2018. Cat. No. 5232.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/5232.0Sep%202018?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018b) Australian national accounts: national income, expenditure and product, Sep 2018. Cat. No. 5206.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/DetailsPage/5206.0Sep%202018?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018c) Australian system of national accounts, 2017–18. Cat. No. 5204.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/productsbyCatalogue/110953FFA28D4E52CA2572110002FF03?OpenDocument (accessed 11 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018d) Average weekly earnings, Australia, May 2018. Cat. No. 6302.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/productsbyCatalogue/7F76D15354BB25D5CA2575BC001D5866?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018e) Characteristics of employment, Australia, August 2018. Cat. No. 6333.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ProductsbyCatalogue/A8CAED8E5F9FB2E1CA257F1F00044E8C?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018f) Employee earnings and hours, Australia, May 2018. Cat. No. 6306.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ProductsbyCatalogue/27641437D6780D1FCA2568A9001393DF?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018g) Industrial disputes, Australia, Sep 2018. Cat. No. 6321.0.55.001. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/ProductsbyCatalogue/3B174C96A82857E4CA256EB5007B5722?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

10.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018h) Labour force, Australia, Dec 2018. Cat. No. 6202.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/productsbyCatalogue/6050C537617B613BCA25836800102753?OpenDocument (accessed 19 February 2019).

11.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018i) Labour force, Australia, detailed, quarterly, Nov 2018. Cat. No. 6291.0.55.003. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/productsbyCatalogue/5F60A449AE6DE5F6CA258090000ED52A?OpenDocument (accessed 10 February 2019).

12.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018j) Wage Price Index, Australia, Sep 2018. Cat. No. 6345.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/AUSSTATS/abs@.nsf/productsbyCatalogue/07C8525D230737D4CA2581D700791749?OpenDocument (accessed 13 February 2019).

13.

Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2018k) Participation, job search and mobility, Australia, February 2018. Cat. No. 6226.0. Available at: http://www.abs.gov.au/Ausstats/abs@.nsf/0/6A38AB9379F0EFF9CA257FD8001293DE?OpenDocument (accessed 13 February 2019).

14.

Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) (2017) Living up to the Promise of Harvester: Time for a Living Wage. Melbourne, VIC, Australia: ACTU. Available at: https://www.actu.org.au/media/1033485/living-up-to-the-promise-of-harvester.pdf (accessed 9 February 2019).

15.

Australian Council of Trade Unions (ACTU) (2018) Join the Movement to Change the Rules. Melbourne, VIC, Australia: ACTU. Available at: https://changetherules.org.au/ (accessed 9 February 2019).

16.

Bray

(2013) Reflections on the evolution of the minimum wage in Australia: options for the future. Working paper, Crawford School of Public Policy, Australian National University, Canberra, ACT, Australia, October. Available at: https://socialpolicy.crawford.anu.edu.au/publication/spi-working-paper/2951/reflections-evolution-minimum-wage-australia-options-future (accessed 9 February 2019).

17.

Bray

Stewart

(2013) From the arbitration system to the Fair Work Act: the changing approach in Australia to voice and representation at work. Adelaide Law Review 34: 21–41.

18.

Buchanan

Considine

(2007) The Evolution of Australian Workplace IR 1987–2007: Making Sense of Recent Policy and Practice. Sydney, NSW, Australia: University of Sydney Workplace Research Centre, University of Sydney.

19.

Carmignani

(2018) FactCheck Q&A: did the coalition ‘deliver more than a million jobs in the last year’? The Conversation, 9 July. Available at: https://theconversation.com/factcheck-qanda-did-the-coalition-deliver-more-than-a-million-jobs-in-the-last-year-99378 (accessed 9 February 2019).

20.

Carney

Stanford

(2018) The Dimensions of Insecure Work: A Factbook. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Centre for Future Work. Available at: https://www.futurework.org.au/the_dimensions_of_insecure_work (accessed 9 February 2019).

21.

Centre for Future Work (2018) The future of work is what we make it (Submission to senate select committee on the future of work and workers). Centre for Future Work, Sydney, NSW, Australia, January. Available at: https://www.futurework.org.au/senate_inquiry_future_of_work (accessed 9 February 2019).

22.

Department of Jobs and Small Business (2019) Employment outlook to May 2023, January. Available at: http://lmip.gov.au/default.aspx?LMIP/GainInsights/EmploymentProjections (accessed 9 February 2019).

23.

Department of the Treasury, Australia (2015) 2015 intergenerational report: Australia in 2055, March. Available at: https://static.treasury.gov.au/uploads/sites/1/2017/06/2015_IGR.pdf (accessed 9 February 2019).

24.

Department of the Treasury, Australia (2018) Budget strategy and outlook: budget paper no 1, 2018–19, 8 May. Available at: https://www.budget.gov.au/2018-19/content/bp1/download/bp1_prelims.pdf (accessed 9 February 2019).

25.

Fair Work Commission (2017) Decision, 4 yearly review of modern awards: penalty rates, 23 February. Available at: https://www.fwc.gov.au/sites/awardsmodernfouryr/2017fwcfb1001.pdf (accessed 9 February 2019).

26.

Gradwell

Masters

(2018) A deeper and longer housing downturn, and later RBA tightening. ANZ Bank Australian Economic Insight. 22 November, paywalled but cited by Scutt D (2018) ANZ abandons its call for RBA rate hikes next year as the property downturn becomes longer and larger. Business Insider, 22 November. Available at: https://www.businessinsider.com.au/australia-property-downturn-rba-cash-rate-forecast-anz-2018-11 (accessed 9 February 2019).

27.

Grattan

(2012) Abbott pledges million jobs over first five years. Sydney Morning Herald, 28 November. Available at: https://www.smh.com.au/politics/federal/abbott-pledges-million-jobs-over-first-five-years-20121127-2a5ui.html (accessed 9 February 2019).

28.

Haynes

Holland

Pyman

et al (2008) Free-riding in Australia. Economic and Industrial Democracy 29(1): 7–34.

29.

Henderson

(2018) Public sector austerity and its spill-over effects. In: Stewart

Stanford

Hardy

(eds) The Wages Crisis in Australia: What It Is, and What to Do about It. Adelaide, SA, Australia: University of Adelaide Press, pp. 115–128.

30.

Jericho

(2018) The job increase is less inspiring than the government would like you to believe. The Guardian, 21 May. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/business/grogonomics/2018/may/21/the-job-increase-is-less-inspiring-than-the-government-would-like-you-to-believe (accessed 9 February 2019).

31.

Lowe

(2017) The labour market and monetary policy. Address to the Anika Foundation Luncheon, Sydney. Reserve Bank of Australia, Sydney, NSW, Australia, 26 July. Available at: https://www.rba.gov.au/speeches/2017/sp-gov-2017-07-26.html (accessed 9 February 2019).

32.

Mazzucato

(2015) The Entrepreneurial State: Debunking Public vs. Private Sector Myths. London: Anthem Press.

33.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2015) In It Together: Why Less Inequality Benefits All. Paris: OECD. Available at: http://www.oecd.org/social/in-it-together-why-less-inequality-benefits-all-9789264235120-en.htm (accessed 9 February 2019).

34.

Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) (2019) OECD employment and labour market statistics. Available at: https://www.oecd-ilibrary.org/employment/data/oecd-employment-and-labour-market-statistics_lfs-data-en (accessed 10 January 2019).

35.

Patty

(2018) Casuals paid less than permanent workers, despite loadings. Sydney Morning Herald, 19 November. Available at: https://www.smh.com.au/business/workplace/casuals-paid-less-than-permanent-workers-despite-loadings-20181117-p50gpi.html (accessed 9 February 2019).

36.

Pennington

(2018) On the Brink: The Erosion of Enterprise Agreement Coverage in Australia’s Private Sector. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Centre for Future Work. Available at: https://www.futurework.org.au/on_the_brink_the_crisis_in_private_sector_collective_bargaining (accessed 9 February 2019).

37.

Quiggin

(2018) Government report cheers for wage cuts. Commentary on Australian & world events from a social-democratic perspective, 22 March. Available at: http://johnquiggin.com/2018/03/22/government-report-cheers-for-wage-cuts/ (accessed 9 February 2019).

38.

Quinlan

(2012) The ‘pre-invention’ of precarious employment: the changing world of work in context. Economic and Labour Relations Review 23(4): 3–24.

39.

Sheldon

Junankar

De Rosa Pontello

(2018) The Ruhr or Appalachia? deciding the future of Australia’s coal power workers and communities. University of New South Wales, Industrial Relations Research Centre, Sydney, NSW, Australia, October. Available at: https://apo.org.au/node/199916 (accessed 9 February 2019).

40.

Stanford

(2017) The resurgence of gig work: historical and theoretical perspectives. Economic and Labour Relations Review 28(3): 382–401.

41.

Stanford

(2018a) Charting wage stagnation in Australia. In: Stewart

Stanford

Hardy

(eds) The Wages Crisis in Australia: What It Is, and What to Do about It. Adelaide, SA, Australia: University of Adelaide Press, pp. 21–40.

42.

Stanford

(2018b) The declining labour share in Australia: definition, measurement, and international comparisons. Journal of Australian Political Economy 81: 11–32.

43.

Stanford

(2018c) Historical data on the decline in Australian industrial disputes. Briefing note, Centre for Future Work, Sydney, NSW, Australia, January. Available at: https://www.futurework.org.au/decline_in_strike_frequency (accessed 9 February 2019).

44.

Stanford

Henderson

Grudnoff

(2019) What’s a million, anyway? Australia’s 2013–18 job creation in historical perspective. Centre for Future Work, Sydney, NSW, Australia, January. Available at: https://www.futurework.org.au/what_s_in_a_million_anyway (accessed 9 February 2019).

45.

Stewart

Forsyth

(eds) (2009) Fair Work: The New Workplace Laws and the Work Choices Legacy. Sydney, NSW, Australia: Federation Press.

46.

Stewart

Stanford

(2017) Regulating work in the gig economy: what are the options? Economic and Labour Relations Review 28(3): 420–437.

47.

Stewart

Stanford

Hardy

(eds) (2018) The Wages Crisis in Australia: What It Is, and What to Do about It. Adelaide, SA, Australia: University of Adelaide Press.

48.

Uren

(2019) Australians’ incomes lagging rise in cost of living. The Australian, 7 February. Available at: https://www.theaustralian.com.au/business/economics/australians-incomes-lagging-rise-in-cost-of-living/news-story/59321d6357f84a2af6d05a48738f8357 (accessed 9 February 2019).

49.

Wilson

(2018) The declining labour share and the return of democratic class conflict in Australia. Journal of Australian Political Economy 81: 78–94.

50.

World Inequality Database (n.d.) Top 1% national income share, Australia, 1921–2015. Available at: https://wid.world/country/australia/ (accessed 10 January 2019).