Projects worth $131b at risk from Labor reforms, warns Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association
Labor’s contentious environmental and workplace reforms are jeopardising a projected pipeline of more than 100 mining and energy projects worth $131 billion, warns Australian Resources and Energy Employer Association boss Steve Knott.
Mr Knott also believes the changes sweeping through the revenue-generating sectors risk taking Australia into a “bizarre new era”.
Labor’s controversial “same job, same pay” changes to industrial relations laws has already sparked a list of demands from the Australian Workers Union for iron ore powerhouse BHP, with calls for excess superannuation and fortnightly ‘mentoring bonuses’ to be piled onto yearly $10,000 ‘retention bonuses’ and wage hikes.
The West Australian revealed exclusively on Friday the union wants workers who are required to train other employees as part of their normal job duties at two Pilbara iron ore hubs to receive an annual bonus, on top of their base salaries.
The collective bargaining agreement sought would see annual pay increases of either a flat 5 per cent, or WA’s cost price index percentage plus an extra per cent, whichever is greater.
BHP was a vocal opponent of the industrial relations reforms, warning it could cost it more than $1 billion.
Mr Knott told The Australian the new laws allowed unions representing a minority of workers to submit a list of demands and wait on the Fair Work Commission to make a ruling.
“For decades, post centralised wage fixing in the 70s and 80s, many employers have been setting their wages and conditions —commensurate with what they need to do to attract, retain and motivate employees,” he told the newspaper.
“Having unions, often representing a minority of the workforce, having their log of claims determined by FWC and applying to the entire workforce, is reverting to a system that failed Australian employers and employees 40 years ago.”
Mr Knott also told the newspaper that Labor had failed to recognise the Federal government’s first back-to-back surplus in 16 years had been built off the back of $70b in resources and energy sector royalties.
“Without the contribution of Australia’s mining and energy projects, vital services such as Medicare, the NDIS, hospitals, schools and aged care would be deprived of critical investment,” he said.
“Yet Australia is on the threshold of a bizarre new era, where regulatory red tape, activism and unproductive workplace relations policies threaten the next wave of revenue and job-creating resources and energy projects.“
Resource giants are also opposing Labor’s Nature Positive plan to establish a Federal environmental protection authority, which they say would further compound already length delays in obtaining approvals for projects that would employ tens of thousands of workers.