E5Fl1( 1_ UU h L ' U U PM__
AUStA[
PRIME MINISTER
FOR MEDIA SUNDAY, 16-AUGUST 1981
ELECTROATE TALK
Last week I spoke to you about the nature of the meetings to.
be he ld during this week with employers, the Australian
Council of Trade Unions and with the Premiers. Among other
things, I suggested that too much should not be expected of
the meetings that if we only succeeded in achieving a better.
understanding of where we all stood, of our roles and responsibilities
in thie post-indexation period that alone would be a significant
achievement at this time. I believe that the results of the
meetings, of the thinking and of the talking that went on among
all participants in preparation for them, contained many more
positive elements than has so far been acknowledged by media
commentators. In particular, the meeting with the Premiers resulted in a
joint statement by all Governments which offers constructive
basis for future developments in the wages and industrial
relations area, a statement which received less media
attention than it deserves.
Tefirst, and most important thing to be said is that all
parties to the meetings agreed that the initial community
reactions to the abandonment of the wage indexation system
overlooked the fact that there is a fully functioning wage
determination system, a system that remains in operation, and
which is capable of providing for the fair and orderly treatment
of legitimate wage claims now that indexation has gone. Central
to that system is the Conciliation and Arbitration Commission
which has statutory obligations not merely to seek to resolve
industrial disputes, but also to consider wages and other
industrial claims in the light of the interests of the comm. unity
as a whole, and to take into account the state of the' economy,
especially inflation and employment. The Commission will
h * ear claims that are put to it, and will assess those claims
in terms of its own responsibilities.
It was agreed at the meetings this week, and especially at the
special Premiers' Conference, that it would help in . re-establishing
the system of hearing individual industry pay claims if a major
industry claim could be dealt with soon, so that the guidelines
to be used by the Commission in handling individual cases could
be established, and a possible source of uncertainty-removed.
The Premiers also asked the Confederation of* Australian Industry
and Australian* Council of Trade Unions to agree to consider
how claims currently being made could be brought forward in an.
orderly and equitable manner, and so that the interests of lower
paid, less industrially strong sections of the workforce would.
be given protection.
I -2-
The fact that all of the meetings confirmed a strong commitment
to Australia's centralised wage determination system offers the
* best possible prospect for ensuring that stability prevails.
In one sense, of course, to talk of our system as centralised
is to overlook the fact that-each state has a separate tribunal
for dealing -with state awards.
It was agreed among the Premiers that orderly processing of
wage claims, and fair and consistent treatment of employees
throughout Australia requires that Commonwealth and state
tribunals should develop consistent procedures, and the
Commonwealth and all state Governments have asked the presidents
of their tribunals to meet urgently to work towards this
objective, and to eliminate the dangers of state-by-state
leap-frogging of pay claims.
Individual industry cases are not the only form of wage case
that will occur under the new circumstances. In announcing
its decision to abandon wage indexation, the Arbitration Commission
stated a national wage case would be held in 1982, in which
general economic conditions would be considered. The Commonwealth
and state Governments, in another important decision, committed
themselves to work towards the establishment of agreed
principles that might be put to this national wage case. All
Ministers for Labour have been asked to meet soon to commence
this task. All of these decisions, and the expressions of
attitudes which emerged in the course of the week, provide
proof o~ f the willingness of all participants to recognise their
responsibilities in the wage determination process; to recognise
that the benefits of economic growth should be distributed
across the whole community, not just to the large and
powerful whether businesses or unions; to recognise, therefore,
that there are limits to growth of wages possible in any one
year. For its part, the Commonwealth Government informed all participants
of its view that its role in the new circumstances would be
limited to involvement in major cases, such as the national wage
cases, cases involving claims for reduced standard hours, and.
major industry test cases. There is, I believe, a clear
understanding now emerging that the Commonwealth's ability
to control wages is limited in constitutional terms, and
practical terms. There are indirect means of control through
the Government's influence over the economic climate. These
can be exerted through the Budget, monetary and fiscal policies,
tariffs, and the exchange rate. These can be used in developing
a general economic framework designed to boost the growth of
the economy while acting as a counter against excessive wage
expectations. In any event, we have never sought to control
wages, but rather to seek to ensure that wage growth is consistent
with sustained improvements in the standard of-living.
With the spirit of co-operation revealed at the meetings
this week, and a continued willingness to make the system work,
the prosj. oct for stable industrial relations, and
attainment of those sustained improvements in living standards,
is substantial indeed.