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The National Retail Association (NRA) and the Australian Retailers Association (ARA) has slammed the Federal Government’s processing of its Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill, saying the laws must face proper Parliamentary scrutiny.

On October 27, the Labor Party and Greens voted down a proposal by Senate cross benchers to allow a Senate Committee to consider the implications of the Bill until early 2023. 

The Bill was deferred to the Education and Employment Legislation Committee, with a report due by November 17, 2022.

NRA Interim CEO Lindsay Carroll said such wide-reaching reforms should go through the normal Parliamentary process, including proper scrutiny of the legislation by the relevant committee.

“There is absolutely no need for the Government to ram this Bill through with such indecent haste,” Carroll said.

“These proposals will have very widespread and detrimental impacts on employers, which will almost certainly result in business owners reducing their staff or cutting back hours.

“It defies logic to think that Governments can keep making it harder and harder to employ staff and think that it won’t affect the way business owners respond.

“The only reason to rush the passage of the Bill with such haste would be to avoid proper scrutiny and debate over the likely impacts of these changes.

“If the Government was confident in the merits of its reforms, it would not be afraid to answer questions and hear the concerns of employers.”

Carroll thanked the Senate cross benchers for their efforts to allow more time for discussion, particularly ACT Senator David Pocock who attempted to extend the reporting deadline for the Committee Inquiry.

Pocock remarked on this in the Senate, saying the committee will only have 22 days to get the bill right “for Australians.”

Carroll said that the Government “has not shown any more respect for the cross benchers than they have shown for employers.”

“This is a very disappointing start to a crucial legislative process.”

The ARA also weighed in on the bill's reportedly rushed process, with CEO Paul Zahra saying that some aspects of the government’s reforms will benefit employers and employees alike.

“Coming out of the Jobs and Skills Summit less than two months ago, there was a real sense of common purpose and goodwill about the path forward," Zahra said. "We obviously expected some changes to industrial relations policy as a result of the change in government and the summit, but the scope of reform outlined in the Secure Jobs, Better Pay Bill is much more extensive than we’d expected.

“While we support changes announced about the Better-Off Overall Test and gender-based pay equity, the reforms that extend access to multi-employer bargaining are a real concern for our members.

Zahra said that for the ARA's smaller members, "many of whom are still recovering from two years of disruption", multi-epmployer bargaining will pose a struggle. 

“They don’t have the resources to work through a costly and time-consuming bargaining process with other employers and multiple employee representatives," Zahra continued. 

“And we don’t believe that the prospect of bringing our larger members, and some of the country’s largest employers, all to the same bargaining table is fit-for-purpose or workable in the real world."

Speaking on the rushed bill, Zahra said that three weeks isn't enough for the government to consult with business on "some of the most significant changes to industrial relations in a decade."

“We are supportive of the need to drive sustainable wages growth and create more secure jobs," Zahra said. "Some aspects of the Bill help deliver on these goals. But other reforms outlined for the first time today will have a significant impact right across the retail community, without delivering benefits for employees.”

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