Submission from Carlton & United Breweries to Senate Standing
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Submission from Carlton & United Breweries to Senate Standing Committee on Education and Employment Inquiry into Corporate Avoidance of the Fair Work Act 2009 1. Executive Summary Carlton & United Breweries (CUB) is pleased to provide this submission to the Senate Standing Committee on Education and Employment Inquiry into Corporate Avoidance of the Fair Work Act 2009 (FWA). CUB’s submission addresses the Inquiry’s terms of reference by providing information about the following: (a) CUB’s long history of operations in Australia; (b) CUB’s workforce, and how it engages reputable third party contractors to provide services to it; (c) CUB’s approach to meeting its obligations under the FWA and the National Employment Standards (NES); (d) the state of the brewing industry in Australia; (e) the Abbotsford Brewery dispute, which CUB remains committed to resolving. The FWA is the cornerstone of workplace relations in Australia. The system of NES, modern awards and minimum wages provide a system that ensures that employees have base level terms and conditions across Australia. CUB is committed to ensuring that it meets the objectives and the spirit of the FWA and the NES. It is these base level terms and conditions that many employers, such as CUB, expand upon to offer market leading terms and conditions, to invest in the professional development of employees and to maintain a highly engaged workforce. For instance, over many years, CUB has worked cooperatively with relevant unions to agree to enterprise agreements for all operational staff at CUB’s breweries that offer terms and conditions that exceed the NES and the applicable modern awards. CUB, like many recognized employers in Australia, engages reputable third party contractors to provide services to its breweries and operations in various circumstances. When CUB engages a third party contractor, it expects that the third party contractor meets its obligations under the FWA, NES, and any applicable enterprise agreements and modern awards. CUB’s standard services agreement also requires its third party contractors to comply with these obligations. 77 Southbank Boulevard, Southbank VIC 3006 Australia Telephone +61 3 8626 2000 Facsimile +61 3 8626 2002 www.cub.com.au CUB Pty Ltd ABN 76 004 056 106 We are disappointed that an industrial dispute has arisen over the change in third party contractors earlier this year at the Abbotsford Brewery. We remain committed to working with the unions and the Fair Work Commission to ensure the dispute is resolved as quickly as possible. 2. About Carlton & United Breweries CUB’s history dates back to 1832 when the Cascade brewery commenced brewing in Hobart, Tasmania. Brewing has continued without interruption at Cascade since this time, making it the oldest manufacturing site to continue operating across any industry in Australia. CUB as a company was born in 1907 from the merger of six breweries, including McCracken’s (1851), Victoria (1854), Carlton (1864) and Foster’s (1888), and continues to be the proud manufacturer of some of Australia’s most famous beers, including VB, Carlton Draught, Crown Lager and Cascade. CUB’s proud history of creating work and being part of the community remains alive today. In addition to CUB’s own workforce, hundreds of thousands of Australians are employed in the beer industry and contribute to its business – from the barley farmers, malting operations and hops growers, to the truck drivers, hospitality/tourism workers, and liquor store retail staff. The Australian Liquor Stores Association (ALSA) estimates that the retail alcohol industry directly employs more than 47,500 people across Australia. CUB has a long and effective history of working collaboratively with the trade union movement. One of CUB’s founding brewers, Robert McCracken, was the first brewer in Melbourne to introduce the 8 hour working day in 1879. CUB is also proud that during the Great Depression in the 1930’s none of its employees lost their job, after CUB management and the Liquor Trades Union agreed to a small wage decrease to ensure everyone remained employed during this difficult period of Australia’s history. CUB is also a proud supporter of many community, cultural and sporting organisations across Australia. From CUB’s sponsorship of elite sports such as the Australian Football League and the National Rugby League through to CUB’s support of grass roots sporting clubs. CUB is a founding member and the largest funder of DrinkWise, Australia’s leading organisation on driving cultural change around responsible drinking. CUB has been proud to support DrinkWise’s many successful campaigns including ‘Kids absorb your drinking’, ‘How to drink properly’ and the ‘You won’t miss a moment’ campaign, in conjunction with our major sporting partners. CUB takes its commitment to responsible consumption of alcohol seriously through the way it produces, markets and sells its products. CUB is a signatory to the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code and the CEO Global Alcohol Commitments through the International Association for Responsible Drinking. 77 Southbank Boulevard, Southbank VIC 3006 Australia Telephone +61 3 8626 2000 Facsimile +61 3 8626 2002 www.cub.com.au CUB Pty Ltd ABN 76 004 056 106 CUB also believes that safety in the workplace is of critical importance. CUB is committed to the continual improvement of its policies and practices to provide a safe working environment, and invests heavily in initiatives to improve safety outcomes for all of its employees, and any contractors that work on its premises. CUB has adopted a systemic approach to identifying hazards in the workplace, implementing risk controls to reduce the danger of any hazards identified, and ensuring proper processes and practices are in place to manage risks on an ongoing basis. This has resulted in a steady, traceable improvement in overall safety performance with recordable injuries, lost time injuries and workers compensation claims at a historic low for the business (spanning 150 years of operations). This also places CUB amongst the lowest in lost time injury frequency rate for the Australian beverages industry. CUB recently joined AB InBev, which is a global brewer headquartered in Leuven, Belgium. The transaction came about on 11 October 2016 as a result of AB InBev merging with SABMiller, the former parent company of CUB. AB InBev’s global brands include Corona, Budweiser and Stella Artois. Brewing beer in more than 50 countries worldwide, AB InBev employs approximately 200,000 individuals, and takes great pride in the development of its employees. AB InBev has a strong and effective history worldwide of working closely with organised labour, and has prioritised developing a cooperative and productive relationship with trade unions in Australia. CUB and AB InBev are committed to growing and investing in the Australian business, and continuing to support their employees and the broader community. 3. CUB’s direct workforce CUB prides itself on having a diverse and engaged workforce. CUB directly employs approximately 1,500 people across Australia. Given that CUB’s people are the core of its business, CUB seeks to be an ‘employer of choice’ by providing pay and employment conditions that exceed the NES and modern awards and by continually investing in learning and development. CUB directly employs approximately 420 operational employees in its three breweries, located at Abbotsford, Victoria; Yatala, Queensland; and Cascade, Tasmania. All full-time operational staff are covered by site specific enterprise agreements. In addition to its operational workforce, CUB directly employs approximately 1,120 employees in various roles nationally. These employees are salary-based and are located in CUB’s head office in Melbourne, Victoria; offices at its breweries; and CUB’s sales offices in locations throughout Australia. 77 Southbank Boulevard, Southbank VIC 3006 Australia Telephone +61 3 8626 2000 Facsimile +61 3 8626 2002 www.cub.com.au CUB Pty Ltd ABN 76 004 056 106 4. Wages and conditions of CUB employees All of CUB’s operational workforce are covered by enterprise agreements negotiated with the relevant unions and approved by the Fair Work Commission. CUB is party to five enterprise agreements that cover the operations in Victoria, Tasmania and Queensland.1 These enterprise agreements provide employees with employment terms and conditions that exceed their minimum entitlements under the NES and modern awards. For instance: Rates of pay: Rates of pay exceed the rates of pay under the relevant modern award; Maximum weekly hours: The majority of CUB’s operational employees are engaged upon a 35 hour week, although the maximum weekly hours set under the NES are 38 hours per week; Flexible working arrangements: CUB has a Flexible Work Practices policy, which supports healthy lifestyles and family friendly work practices, by providing options for employees to achieve greater work-life flexibility. These options include job sharing, telecommuting (working from home), part-time employment and flexible working hours. CUB also offers a program which provides assistance for employees in managing the process of returning to the workplace after a period of parental leave. CUB also provides support for employees in managing caring responsibilities with the Eldercare assistance program; Parental leave: CUB provides eight weeks paid maternity leave to employees in addition to the Government paid parental leave, where the NES provides for unpaid parental leave; Personal leave and