Labor Shadow Industrial Relations Minister Wayne Berry has announced Labor’s program to secure workers’ entitlements under an ACT wide scheme to protect long service leave benefits.
Mr Berry’s announcement follows the collapse of Ansett and the devastating losses faced by workers in the wake of high profile business collapses.
"It is time that protection of long service leave benefits was guaranteed for all workers, not just those associated with John Howard’s brother," Mr Berry said.
"With a string of high-profile business collapses highlighting the danger to workers’ entitlements we sometimes forget the smaller companies which go to the wall leaving their workers financially stranded. The recent collapse of Florey Medical Centre is an example of this.
"It is distressing to hear the repeated calls for help from workers when businesses collapses leave them in financial ruin.
"Labor has already improved long service leave benefits for construction workers. It has also put in place the first portable, centrally funded scheme for cleaning industry workers in Australia.
"Construction workers and cleaning workers in the ACT can now feel secure in the knowledge that their entitlements are safe no matter what happens to the businesses they work for. The level playing field which results for businesses will mean that good employers are not placed at a disadvantage by those employers who manage to avoid long service leave benefits for their workers.
"Of the 80,000 private sector workers only about 6,000 construction and cleaning workers are in centrally managed funds. My announcement today means that many thousands more workers will be entitled to long service leave , and up to 70,000 workers will have their benefits guaranteed.
"Taxpayers should not be asked to underwrite business collapses and my proposal to protect workers’ long service leave entitlements will not cost taxpayers.
"Under Labor’s plan workers’ long service leave benefits will be protected in an industry by industry scheme funded by a levy on employers starting at about 1.5% of salary. Based on experience in these schemes the levy will reduce over time," Mr Berry concluded.