From 43m agoKey events19m agoGood morning26m agoBusiness groups attack IR reforms43m agoMPs from across political spectrum to travel to DC to lobby for Assange release1h agoWelcomeFilters BETAKey events (4)Australia (3)6m ago17.17 EDT
The Qatar airlines decision was one of the issues to emerge from the mess that was yesterday, with plenty of business groups, as well as Queensland deputy premier Steven Miles chiming in to say they would like to see more flights in the domestic market.
Anthony Albanese tried to head off the issue yesterday in question time, by pointing to a decision former Coalition minister Michael McCormack deferred when it came to Qatar, but it hasn’t worked.
Now WA premier Roger Cook has weighed in;
Let me say this about Qatar Airways – they backed Western Australia during Covid. They had as few as seven passengers on their planes, but they continued to fly. We think more flights with Qatar is a great opportunity for Western Australia and we think they should have been backed when it came to their request for extra routes in Australia.
19m ago17.05 EDTGood morning
A very big thank you to Martin for kicking us off this morning – you have Amy Remeikis with you for most of the day as we navigate parliament.
Katharine Murphy, Paul Karp, Daniel Hurst, Josh Butler and Sarah Basford Canales will help walk you through what is happening on this second day of the sitting.
The prime minister has left for the Asean summit, meaning we have acting prime minister Richard Marles.
Ready?
Let’s get into it.
Updated at 17.09 EDT26m ago16.57 EDTBusiness groups attack IR reforms
Business groups have criticised the Albanese government’s proposed workplace reforms aimed at protecting the pay and conditions of workers, Australian Associated Press reports.
The government says the reforms are focused on closing loopholes, including the use of labour hire workers to undercut the rate of pay agreed for employees.
But the changes to workplace law, introduced to parliament on Monday, have been labelled as “radical” and “unworkable” by bodies representing employers.
Master Builders Australia, which represents the building and construction industry, challenged the notion the reforms would have a minimal impact.
“There is nothing simple about adding hundreds of pages to the Fair Work Act and expecting businesses of all sizes and independent contractors to try and navigate it,” chief executive officer Denita Wawn said.
The Australian Retailers Association raised concerns about the changes for casual workers.
“We see the benefits of a more permanent retail workforce, but our members say there are currently very low levels of casual conversion,” ARA boss Paul Zahra said.
He was worried the bill would add administrative hassle without making any material change to casual conversion rates.
43m ago16.40 EDTMPs from across political spectrum to travel to DC to lobby for Assange release
A group of politicians from across Australia’s political spectrum…
2023-09-04 16:09:19
Post from www.theguardian.com
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