Page 280 - Week 01 - Thursday, 9 December 2004
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families. The government’s commitment to integrated services for parents and their children will continue through the child and family centres model.
In a community the size of Canberra we have an opportunity to provide better workplaces that are productive and address core issues of social responsibility like the provision of care for older relatives or the raising of children. Through the government’s work, I am confident that employees and employers will become active advocates for work and family policy changes and implement them in practice.
Our continuing progress on work and family issues has been achieved across a number of portfolios. However, it is through industrial relations changes that many people have seen the active work of the government in addressing this issue.
The Stanhope government has ensured that employers and employees in the ACT operate in a cooperative and responsible work environment and that the industrial confrontation and abrogation of responsibility by government are a thing of the past. We have provided policy direction for industrial relations in the ACT to support economic growth, job creation and fairness and equity in employment.
The federal government has announced plans to introduce legislation to reduce the rights and protections of workers. This government will respond to ensure that workers in the territory, particularly vulnerable workers, are not disadvantaged or treated unfairly. Our reform agenda in the past term was progressive and considerate of community expectations and stakeholder interests. We will continue this tradition into this term and we will not shy away from difficult industrial issues.
In the last term, landmark law reform in occupational health and safety accompanied our industrial manslaughter laws, ensuring that the legislative framework for safe workplaces was effectively improved. Our changes to the Crimes Act and the OH&S Act have given people increased certainty; but there remains work to be done in the field. The OH&S council, a tripartite body, is continuing its review into the OH&S Act.
The act will be supported by new regulations to ensure that workplace safety is enforced. We will be maintaining a strong compliance and enforcement focus through ACT WorkCover, utilising the range of new compliance tools available including compliance agreements, enforceable undertakings, prohibition and improvement notices, and prosecution for OH&S breaches. We will also continue to modernise workers compensation laws to improve compliance and, where possible, reduce premiums for employers while ensuring that injured workers receive fair benefits on injury and proper support to get back to work.
In implementing changes to the law, the consultative approach we developed in the first term will continue. We have engaged with all stakeholders in industrial relations on every piece of policy this government has introduced. With the formation of the peak Industrial Relations Advisory Council, we further developed these processes. The views of all participants in workplace and industrial reform are welcome in the development of sound industrial legislation.
Over the coming year we will begin the task of assisting the community sector to grapple with its significant industrial issues. Through the work of the community task force and a
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