CCIQ wants to merge penalty rates to boost employment

by Leon Gettler

The Chamber of Commerce and Industry Queensland says merging weekend penalty rates will increase employment for casuals.

Nick Behrens, the CCIQ’s general manager, advocacy, said the peak body had gone to members to get their views about penalty rates and had adjusted its position accordingly.

“What hospitality establishments [and retailers] did come back and say in relation to penalty rates is that they do influence the number of hours offered in employment,"  Mr Behrens told the Brisbane Times.

He said members had maintained that merging the Saturday time and a half penalty with the Sunday double time penalty would "increase the number of hours offered in employment".

He said merging the penalty rates would result in increased hours for casual employees.

"Some people's pay may reduce, but some may increase because of the additional hours of work which would be available," he said.

"So we can't deny it will reduce some people's pay, but we are hopeful it will mean additional hours of work."

The chamber however has a fight on its hands with the Save our Weekend group, created by unions and like-minded groups protesting any change, releasing a research report undertaken by the left-leaning McKell Institute.

According to that report, cutting penalty rates of Brisbane retail and hospitality staff would reduce their overall wages.

"This report finds that under the most conservative methodology, dividing Sunday shifts amongst a number of part-time workers, that retail workers stand to lose around $32 per week, or around $1700 a year from the proposed reforms," the report said.

"Hospitality workers stand to lose around $17 per week or around $900 per year.

"Adopting the methodology of workers doing a full eight-hour shift, retail workers stand to lose $114 per week or around $6000 per year.

"Hospitality workers stand to lose up to $71 per week or around $3700 per year."

29^th March 2016