COALITION GETS IT WRONG ON INDUSTRIAL RELATIONS AND SUPERANNUATION

Coalition Finance Spokesman Andrew Robb has again proved that the Coalition cannot be trusted on industrial relations.  

In a media release issued yesterday, Mr Robb said that the Fair Work Act (Regulation 3.46) already ensures that employees receive information on their payslips about superannuation actually paid into their accounts. 

Mr Robb has got it wrong. Regulation 3.46 of the Fair Work Act does not require employers to disclose on payslips the actual amount of superannuation they have paid. Instead, Regulation 3.46 enables employers to disclose the amount of superannuation they are liable to pay.  Employees want to have comfort that they have been paid their superannuation entitlements rather than being advised of the amount they should be paid. 

3.46 (5) If the employer is required to make superannuation contributions for the benefit of the employee, the pay slip must also include: 

(a) the amount of each contribution that the employer made during the period to which the pay slip relates, and the name, or the name and number, of any fund to which the contribution was made; or 

(b) the amounts of contributions that the employer is liable to make in relation to the period to which the pay slip relates, and the name, or the name and number, of any fund to which the contributions will be made. 

(Fair Work Regulations, Chapter 3, Part 3-6, Division 3, Regulation 3.46 (5) ) 

In recognition of this gap in disclosure obligations, the Cooper Review into superannuation recommended reform (Recommendation 9.16).  

The Gillard Labor Government is committed to ensuring employees’ pay slips reflect what is actually paid in superannuation. This is a key component of the Protecting Workers’ Entitlements package released yesterday, because it enables employees to know if their employer is not putting money into their superannuation account.  

The Coalition keeps tripping over themselves on industrial relations because they are terrified of revealing their real intent, to bring back WorkChoices.  

While the Gillard Labor Government will protect the entitlements that employees work so hard for, Tony Abbott will rip them away.

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