A Shorten Labor Government will examine the definition of “casual” work and will set an objective test for determining when a worker is “casual”.
Increasingly, the oxymoronic term “permanent casual” is being used by employers to describe their employees.
This is confusing, ambiguous and leads to uncertainty for employers and employees alike.
While the ability to use casual work is an important component of the labour market, it has been increasingly exploited. Workers should not be “casual” just because their employer tells them they are. Labor will put an end to the increasing prevalence of this practice.
Labor will work with all affected stakeholders including employers, employer groups and unions in developing the objective test, which will ensure certainty for all parties.
Underemployment – that is people who want more work but cannot find it – has never been higher. There are more than one million of our fellow Australians in this position right now.
Full time jobs are being lost all over the labour market, including 60,000 in the last 6 months.
The Abbott-Turnbull Government has not done one single thing to address the growing incidence of insecure work.
In fact, two thirds of the jobs that have been created under the Abbott-Turnbull Government are part-time.
Australians deserve a government with the courage to put people first and it’s only Labor that will do that.