“There is real anxiety from small business”: David Pocock explains his industrial relations deal-making strategy
As business groups bemoan the contentious Secure Jobs, Better Pay bill, independent Senator David Pocock says the amendments he secured will shield small businesses from the most significant industrial relations reforms contained in the legislation.
Small businesses under 20 staff shielded from enterprise bargaining reforms as IR bill nears passage
The federal government's industrial relations reform bill is set to pass into law after the Senate crossbench secured a raft of amendments.
Opinion: Labor has broken its promises to small business, so it’s time Julie Collins resigned
Collins is either a lame-duck minister or is actually working behind closed doors with other ministers and with the ACTU to make life harder for those she supposedly represents, says Peter Strong.
IR reform: Burke open to changing small business coverage after Senate inquiry calls for 20 employee cut-off
Lawmakers should pass the federal government's highly contested industrial relations reform package if small businesses with fewer than 20 employees are excluded from the single-interest agreement overhaul, a Senate inquiry has found.
John Durie: It’s time for a small business-specific IR award
Why doesn’t the federal government revive an old plan to establish a small business industrial relations award?
“Drag them against their will”: Chambers of commerce launch last-ditch ad campaign to postpone IR bill
Australian business lobbyists have launched a last-ditch attempt to convince lawmakers to split, postpone, or abandon Labor's contentious industrial relations bill.
Qantas says multi-employer bargaining could jeopardise flight routes as unions condemn employment “loopholes”
Labor's omnibus industrial relations reform could impose devastating costs on Australian airlines and put the "viability of some services into question", Qantas says.
Peter Strong: Albanese government neglects small business with ‘UnionChoices’ legislation
When it comes to small business we are hearing lots of good rhetoric but seeing the opposite in action, says Peter Strong.
Construction sector pared from Labor’s industrial relations reform bill as business opposition heats up
Building and construction companies will be excluded from Labor's multi-employer bargaining reforms according to a suite of amendments the federal government has tacked onto its IR reform bill.
Labor working on crossbencher Pocock to pass industrial relations reform, but splitting the bill is not yet an option
Labor has hinted at further amendments to its massive industrial relations reform bill, but lingering Senate concerns over multi-employer bargaining remain a barrier between the federal government and its hopes of passing the omnibus in full by Christmas.
Labor agrees to multi-employer bargaining concessions as it pushes to pass legislation before Christmas
The federal government is optimistic that amendments to its industrial relations reform package, including tweaks to its multi-employer bargaining plans, could secure its support in the Senate.
“Serious concerns”: Senate crossbenchers David Pocock and Jacqui Lambie say they won’t rubber-stamp Labor’s industrial relations reform bill
Labor hopes to pass its industrial relations bill by December 1, but key Senate crossbenchers say they need more time to assess the reforms.
