Vol. 40 No. 1 2014

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https://hdl.handle.net/2328/35016

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    Long Service Leave, the Labour Market, and Portability of Entitlements
    (National Institute of Labour Studies, 2014) Thornthwaite, L ; Markey, R
    In this article we examine the case for the portability of long service leave (LSL) entitlements. Proliferating flexibility in employment arrangements increasingly leaves workers without coverage of employment provisions based on tenure with a single employer. An historical analysis of developments in LSL in Australia, including implementation of portable schemes in particular industries, and an analysis of labour-market trends are undertaken. We argue that the restriction of LSL to long-term employment with a single employer is anachronistic in the modern labour market. Nevertheless, LSL remains an important entitlement in the context of the contemporary labour market—perhaps more so than previously—even if the arguments in support of LSL have generally shifted in emphasis as a result of changes in the labour market. We conclude that a general entitlement to portable leave would deal with current inequities with respect to access to LSL. It would particularly assist in reconciling employers’ demands for flexibility with employees’ demands for protection.
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    Contributory Misconduct Reductions in Unfair Dismissal Remedies
    (National Institute of Labour Studies, 2014) Southey, K
    "When an attempt to conciliate an unfair-dismissal claim fails, arbitration may be called upon to determine whether the dismissal was fair or unfair. In the event that the dismissal is deemed unfair, Australia’s federal industrial tribunal can reduce the amount of compensation ordered for the worker if their conduct contributed to the dismissal. This article offers original insights about the application of contributory-misconduct provisions to unfair-dismissal remedies by Australia’s federal industrial tribunal. A content analysis was performed on arbitration decisions concerning misconduct-related dismissals made between July 2000 and June 2010 that awarded a remedy to the worker. It was found that reductions to remedies were more highly associated with situations where employees engaged in production deviance, had longer service histories, and apologised for their behaviour. Within the 33 decisions that recorded a reduction to the remedy, three typical remedy discounts were identified: reduced back pay, no back pay, or part reductions to compensation. It is concluded that in broad terms, the reductions may provide some sense of restorative justice to the organisation in finalising an unfair-dismissal dispute. However, these reductions may have less meaning to individual victims where the worker’s misconduct involved acts of inter-personal deviance."
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    Insights into the Working Experience of Casual Academics and Their Immediate Supervisors
    (National Institute of Labour Studies, 2014) Davis, D ; Perrott, B ; Perry, L J
    "The increasing use of casual university academics has been an issue of concern to researchers and commentators for some time. Research to date has tended to focus on the plight of casuals who aspire to permanent positions, and emphasising issues such as career dissatisfaction, exploitation, and marginalisation. Little evidence has been gathered that quantifies the views of casuals more broadly. Less still has been gathered on the perceptions of the immediate supervisors of casuals. This article seeks to compare the perceptions of a cohort of casuals and their immediate supervisors. Both quantitative and qualitative data are gathered via a survey of academic staff employed in the business faculty of a large metropolitan university. The survey results indicate, among other things, a high level of mutual satisfaction between casuals and their immediate supervisors. Casuals also expressed a high level of general satisfaction with their work as casual staff. These and other findings are discussed in some detail."
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    The Impact of Employment Specialisation on Regional Labour Market Outcomes in Australia
    (National Institute of Labour Studies, 2014) Hicks, J ; Basu, P K ; Sherley, C
    "This article examines the industry composition of employment across Statistical Divisions in Australia utilising census data from 2001 and 2006. We find some evidence to support the hypothesis that peripheral regions tend to have a higher level of employment specialisation than metropolitan centres, but there is little indication that employment specialisation, in general, grew over the period. From a policy perspective, we provide support for the findings of previous Australian researchers that higher levels of employment specialisation are associated with better labour market outcomes in a region, and that when policymakers assess different regional-development policies, they should give some consideration as to whether or not the implementation of their preferred policy will have an impact upon employment specialisation in the particular region."