DOCSLIB.ORG

Wage Theft? What Wage Theft?!

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Wage Theft? What Wage Theft?! The Senate Education and Employment References Committee Wage theft? What wage theft?! The exploitation of general and specialist cleaners working in retail chains for contracting or subcontracting cleaning companies November 2018 © Commonwealth of Australia 2018 ISBN 978-1-76010-807-6 (Printed Version) ISBN 978-1-76010-807-6 (HTML Version) This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. Members Chair Senator Gavin Marshall ALP, VIC Deputy Chair Senator Slade Brockman LP, WA (from 10 September 2018, Deputy Chair from 11 September 2018) Members Senator Catryna Bilyk ALP, TAS Senator Mehreen Faruqi AG, NSW (from 21 August 2018) Senator Deborah O'Neill ALP, NSW Senator James Paterson LP, VIC Substitute Members Senator Andrew Bartlett AG, QLD (for Senator Hanson-Young on 19 July 2018) Senator the Hon Doug Cameron ALP, NSW (for Senator Marshall on 19 July 2018 and 25 July 2018 and for Senator Bilyk on 18 October 2018) Senator Jane Hume LP, VIC (for Senator Gichuhi on 19 July 2018) Senator Sue Lines ALP, WA (for Senator O'Neill on 19 July 2018) Senator Nick McKim AG, TAS (for Senator Hanson-Young on 25 July 2018) Senator Jim Molan AO, DSC LP, NSW (for Senator Paterson from 5 November 2018) Participating Members Senator the Hon Doug Cameron ALP, NSW Senator the Hon Eric Abetz LP, TAS Former Members Senator Lucy Gichuhi LP, SA (Deputy Chair until 10 September 2018) Senator Sarah Hanson-Young AG, SA (from 19 June 2018 to 21 August 2018) iii Secretariat Mr Stephen Palethorpe, Committee Secretary Ms Natasha Rusjakovski, Principal Research Officer Ms Kimberley Balaga, Senior Research Officer Ms Kate Campbell, Senior Research Officer Ms Ariane Lloyd-Pitty, Senior Research Officer Mr Matthew Hughes, Research Officer Ms Jade Monaghan, Administrative Officer Committee web page: www.aph.gov.au/senate_eec PO Box 6100 E-mail: [email protected] Parliament House Ph: 02 6277 3521 Canberra ACT 2600 Fax: 02 6277 5706 iv Table of contents Members ............................................................................................................................................. iii List of Recommendations ............................................................................................................... vii Chapter 1—Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 Conduct of the inquiry ................................................................................................. 1 Structure of the report ................................................................................................... 2 Acknowledgment .......................................................................................................... 2 Notes on references ....................................................................................................... 2 Chapter 2—Background ..................................................................................................................... 3 A high risk industry for the exploitation of workers ............................................... 3 Chapter 3—The exploitation of cleaners in Woolworths' supply chain ................................. 11 Non-compliance in supermarkets in Tasmania ...................................................... 11 Effectiveness of Proactive Compliance Deeds ......................................................... 16 Limitations of the Cleaning Accountability Framework ....................................... 27 Chapter 4—Parallels in the public sector ..................................................................................... 31 Links with non-compliant companies ...................................................................... 38 Chapter 5—Growing fragmentation of employment relations ................................................ 43 Effectiveness of the accessorial liability provisions of the Fair Work Act ........... 46 Collective bargaining ................................................................................................. 52 Chapter 6—Additional measures to address non-compliant behaviour ................................ 55 Pyramid subcontracting ............................................................................................. 55 Misuse of labour hire arrangements ......................................................................... 58 Illegal phoenixing ........................................................................................................ 60 Chapter 7—Additional measures to assist vulnerable workers ............................................... 65 Outreach to culturally and linguistically diverse communities ........................... 65 Protections for visa holders ........................................................................................ 69 Findings from the Wage Theft in Silence report ..................................................... 72 Role of unions in protecting vulnerable workers .................................................... 76 Coalition Senators' Dissenting Report.......................................................................................... 81 Appendix 1—Submissions and additional information ........................................................... 85 Appendix 2—Public hearings and witnesses .............................................................................. 89 v Appendix 3—Speak Up flyer provided by Woolworths Group .............................................. 93 Appendix 4—Proposed amendments to the Fair Work Act 2009 by WEstjustice Community Legal Centre ....................................................................................... 97 vi List of Recommendations Recommendation 1 2.30 The committee recommends the Government take immediate steps to protect vulnerable workers subject to wage theft and exploitation by companies who continue to operate with impunity. Recommendation 2 2.31 The committee recommends that upon receipt of the final report of the Migrant Workers' Taskforce, the Government: immediately publicly release the report along with the Taskforce's Progress Report; and within a month, publicly release its response. 2.32 The committee further recommends that the Government take into account the evidence and recommendations of this committee's report in preparing its response to the Migrant Workers' Taskforce report. Recommendation 3 3.73 The committee recommends that the Fair Work Ombudsman, when negotiating future proactive compliance deeds, cease determining arbitrary cut off dates for underpayment recovery schemes, but rather set appropriate timeframes so that all instances of non-compliance can be captured and rectified. Recommendation 4 3.74 The committee recommends that the Fair Work Ombudsman provide Woolworths with the contact details of the Tasmanian cleaners impacted by underpayments so that Woolworths can contact these individuals directly to begin the repayment process. Recommendation 5 3.75 The committee recommends that Woolworths immediately reassess the methods and resources it is using to communicate with cleaners affected by non-compliant behaviour to make it clearer that recourse is available to them and take steps to properly determine the scale and impact of wage theft and non-compliance in Woolworths supermarkets across the nation. vii Recommendation 6 3.89 The committee recommends that the Government not solely rely on voluntary measures such as the Cleaning Accountability Framework to address the gaps in legal protections for workers. Recommendation 7 4.41 The committee recommends that the Australian National Audit Office conduct a performance audit on the extent to which Commonwealth entities are using public resources in an ethical manner in compliance with the Commonwealth Procurement Rules. Recommendation 8 4.42 The committee recommends that the Department of Finance immediately renegotiate the contract with Broadspectrum in order to properly account for the previous working conditions of the cleaners. Recommendation 9 4.57 The committee recommends the Department of Finance broaden the Commonwealth Procurement Rules to preclude a tenderer from entering a contract with any corporation or an associated entity that has been penalised on more than one occasion for being non-compliant with any employee entitlement laws. Recommendation 10 5.43 The committee recommends that for consistency the Fair Work Act 2009 be amended to extend the protections for vulnerable workers from franchise arrangements to other business models such as subcontracting and labour hire arrangements. 5.44 In particular the committee recommends that the Fair Work Act 2009 be amended so that a person (whether an individual or a corporate entity) should be liable for an employer’s contravention of the National Employment Standards, an industrial instrument, the rules concerning the payment of wages or the keeping of records, or the prohibitions on sham contracting, where the person: has a significant degree of influence or control over the employer’s affairs, or over the wages or employment conditions of the relevant employee(s); knew or could reasonably be expected to have known that the contravention (or a contravention of the same or a similar character) would occur; and viii cannot show that they have taken reasonable
Load more

Recommended publications
  • Let Her Finish: Gender, Sexism, and Deliberative Participation in Australian Senate Estimates Hearings (2006-2015)
    Let Her Finish: Gender, Sexism, and Deliberative Participation In Australian Senate Estimates Hearings (2006-2015) Joanna Richards School of Government and Policy Faculty of Business, Government and Law University of Canberra ABSTRACT In 2016, Australia ranks 54th in the world for representation of women in Parliament, with women ​ accounting for only 29% of the House of Representatives, and 39% of the Senate. This inevitably ​ inspires discussion about women in parliament, quotas, and leadership styles. Given the wealth of research which suggests that equal representation does not necessarily guarantee equal treatment, this study focuses on Authoritative representation. That is, the space in between winning a seat and making a difference where components of communication and interaction affect the authority of a speaker.This study combines a Discourse Analysis of the official Hansard transcripts from the Senate Estimates Committee hearings, selected over a 10 year period between 2006 and 2015, with a linguistic ethnography of the Australian Senate to complement results with context. Results show that although female senators and witnesses are certainly in the room, they do not have the same capacity as their male counterparts. Both the access and effectiveness of women in the Senate is limited; not only are they given proportionally less time to speak, but interruption, gate keeping tactics, and the designation of questions significantly different in nature to those directed at men all work to limit female participation in the political domain. As witnesses, empirical measures showed that female testimony was often undermined by senators. Results also showed that female senators and witnesses occasionally adopted masculine styles of communication in an attempt to increase effectiveness in the Senate.
    [Show full text]
  • The Comparative Politics of E-Cigarette Regulation in Australia, Canada and New Zealand by Alex C
    Formulating a Regulatory Stance: The Comparative Politics of E-Cigarette Regulation in Australia, Canada and New Zealand by Alex C. Liber A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Health Services Organizations and Policy) in The University of Michigan 2020 Doctoral Committee: Professor Scott Greer, Co-Chair Assistant Professor Holly Jarman, Co-Chair Professor Daniel Béland, McGill University Professor Paula Lantz Alex C. Liber [email protected] ORCID iD: 0000-0001-7863-3906 © Alex C. Liber 2020 Dedication For Lindsey and Sophia. I love you both to the ends of the earth and am eternally grateful for your tolerance of this project. ii Acknowledgments To my family – Lindsey, you made the greatest sacrifices that allowed this project to come to fruition. You moved away from your family to Michigan. You allowed me to conduct two months of fieldwork when you were pregnant with our daughter. You helped drafts come together and were a constant sounding board and confidant throughout the long process of writing. This would not have been possible without you. Sophia, Poe, and Jo served as motivation for this project and a distraction from it when each was necessary. Mom, Dad, Chad, Max, Julian, and Olivia, as well as Papa Ernie and Grandma Audrey all, helped build the road that I was able to safely walk down in the pursuit of this doctorate. You served as role models, supports, and friends that I could lean on as I grew into my career and adulthood. Lisa, Tony, and Jessica Suarez stepped up to aid Lindsey and me with childcare amid a move, a career transition, and a pandemic.
    [Show full text]
  • Select Committee Into the Political Influence of Donations
    The Senate Select Committee into the Political Influence of Donations Political Influence of Donations © Commonwealth of Australia 2018 ISBN 978-1-76010-745-1 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. Contents List of Recommendations .................................................................................................................. v Abbreviations ..................................................................................................................................... ix Members .............................................................................................................................................. xi Chapter 1—Introduction .................................................................................................................... 1 Conduct of the inquiry ........................................................................................................................ 1 Structure of the report ......................................................................................................................... 2 Legislative definitions ......................................................................................................................... 2 Current federal regulation .................................................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Legislative Council, 16 October 2014, Proof) Page 1 of 2
    Full Day Hansard Transcript (Legislative Council, 16 October 2014, Proof) Page 1 of 2 Full Day Hansard Transcript (Legislative Council, 16 October 2014, Proof) Proof Extract from NSW Legislative Council Hansard and Papers Thursday, 16 October 2014 (Proof). BIRTHS, DEATHS AND MARRIAGES REGISTRATION AMENDMENT (CHANGE OF SEX) BILL 2014 Bill introduced, and read a first time and ordered to be printed on motion by Dr Mehreen Faruqi. Second Reading Dr MEHREEN FARUQI [9.46 a.m.]: I move: That this bill be now read a second time. The "unmarried" requirement within the Births, Deaths and Marriages Registration Act 1995 forces married people who have undergone a sex affirmation procedure who are wishing to have their sex registered or to alter a record of their sex, to choose between divorcing their partner or living with an incorrect sex on their most important personal identity document—their birth certificate. The provision primarily affects married transgender people who have undergone procedures to change their sex to align with their gender identity. It also further adds to the societal stigmatisation experienced by trans people and unnecessarily complicates the already enormous and often traumatic process of transition from one sex to another. The Greens bill would allow the continuation of a person's marriage during and after applying to alter the record of their sex or register a change of sex, and to allow the registrar to make changes to the register accordingly. The bill would amend sections 32B, 32D, 32DA and 32DC of the Act to omit the relevant requirements that persons registering a change of sex or altering a record of their sex are to be unmarried.
    [Show full text]
  • Senate Chamber Seating Plan AS at 15 June 2020 Advisers President Advisers
    Senate Chamber Seating Plan AS AT 15 June 2020 Advisers President Advisers RYAN VIC/LP CLERK CHAIR DEPUTY Government Whips OF COMMITTEES CLERK Opposition Whips BLACK D. SMITH RUSTON K. GALLAGHER URQUHART LINES ROD WA/LP SA/LP ACT/ALP TAS/ALP WA/ALP McGRATH CASH KENEALLY CICCONE McCARTHY QLD/LP WA/LP NSW/ALP VIC/ALP NT/ALP BROCKMAN ABETZ PAYNE Ministers FARRELL KITCHING O'NEILL WA/LP TAS/LP NSW/LP BIRMINGHAM WONG SA/ALP VIC/ALP NSW/ALP SA/LP SA/ALP CHANDLER FIERRAVANTI-WELLS REYNOLDS Leader Leader WATT AYRES WALSH TAS/LP NSW/LP WA/LP QLD/ALP NSW/ALP VIC/ALP of the of the Government Opposition Shadow Ministers ANTIC FAWCETT COLBECK McALLISTER POLLEY CHISHOLM SA/LP SA/LP TAS/LP NSW/ALP TAS/ALP QLD/ALP HENDERSON PATERSON SESELJA BROWN GREEN CARR VIC/LP VIC/LP ACT/LP TAS/ALP QLD/ALP VIC/ALP RENNICK MOLAN HUME DODSON BILYK QLD/LP NSW/LP VIC/LP WA/ALP TAS/ALP VAN ASKEW DUNIAM STERLE SHELDON VIC/LP TAS/LP TAS/LP Hansard WA/ALP NSW/ALP Reporters McLACHLAN SCARR STOKER PRATT A. GALLACHER SA/LP QLD/LP QLD/LP WA/ALP SA/ALP SMALL HUGHES M. SMITH WA/LP NSW/LP SA/ALP BRAGG PATRICK NSW/LP LAMBIE TAS/JLN SA/IND O'SULLIVAN WA/LP GRIFF McKENZIE SIEWERT SA/CA VIC/NAT WA/AG DAVEY RICE NSW/NAT HANSON WATERS VIC/AG QLD/PHON CANAVAN QLD/AG McDONALD QLD/NAT WHISH-WILSON QLD/NAT TAS/AG HANSON-YOUNG ROBERTS McKIM SA/AG QLD/PHON McMAHON TAS/AG THORPE NT/CLP VIC/AG FARUQI STEELE-JOHN NSW/AG WA/AG Advisers Advisers Senate Office Holders & Ministerial Representation in the Senate 46th Parliament • 3 August 2021 • The Parliament of the Commonwealth of Australia Senate Office Holders Senate Party Leaders President: Senator the Hon.
    [Show full text]
  • Commonwealth of Australia 2017 ISSN 2204-6356
    © Commonwealth of Australia 2017 ISSN 2204-6356 (Print) ISSN 2204-6364 (Online) PO Box 6100 Parliament House Canberra ACT 2600 Phone: 02 6277 3823 Fax: 02 6277 5767 Email: [email protected] Website: http://www.aph.gov.au/joint_humanrights/ This document was prepared by the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Human Rights and printed by the Senate Printing Unit, Department of the Senate, Parliament House, Canberra. ii Membership of the committee Members Mr Ian Goodenough MP, Chair Moore, Western Australia, LP Mr Graham Perrett MP, Deputy Chair Moreton, Queensland, ALP Mr Russell Broadbent MP McMillan, Victoria, LP Senator Carol Brown Tasmania, ALP Ms Madeleine King MP Brand, Western Australia, ALP Mr Julian Leeser MP Berowra, New South Wales, LP Senator Nick McKim Tasmania, AG Senator Claire Moore Queensland, ALP Senator James Paterson Victoria, LP Senator Linda Reynolds CSC Western Australia, LP Secretariat Ms Toni Dawes, Committee Secretary Ms Zoe Hutchinson, Principal Research Officer Ms Jessica Strout, Principal Research Officer Ms Mayuri Anupindi, Principal Research Officer Ms Eloise Menzies, Senior Research Officer Mr David Hopkins, Legislative Research Officer External legal adviser Dr Aruna Sathanapally iii Committee information Under the Human Rights (Parliamentary Scrutiny) Act 2011 (the Act), the committee is required to examine bills, Acts and legislative instruments for compatibility with human rights, and report its findings to both Houses of the Parliament. The committee may also inquire into and report on any human rights matters referred to it by the Attorney-General. The committee assesses legislation against the human rights contained in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR); as well as five other treaties relating to particular groups and subject matter.1 Appendix 2 contains brief descriptions of the rights most commonly arising in legislation examined by the committee.
    [Show full text]
  • Impact of the 2014 and 2015 Commonwealth Budget Decisions on the Arts
    The Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee Impact of the 2014 and 2015 Commonwealth Budget decisions on the Arts December 2015 Commonwealth of Australia 2015 ISBN 978-1-76010-335-4 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. This document was produced by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee secretariat and printed by the Senate Printing Unit, Department of the Senate, Parliament House, Canberra. ii Members of the committee Members Senator Penny Wright (AG, SA) (Chair) until 24.6.2015 Senator Glenn Lazarus (IND, QLD) (Chair) from 25.6.2015 Senator the Hon Ian Macdonald (LP, QLD) (Deputy Chair) Senator Catryna Bilyk (ALP, TAS) Senator Jacinta Collins (ALP, VIC) Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig (ALP, QLD) Senator Linda Reynolds (LP, WA) until 12.10.2015 Senator Dean Smith (LP, WA) from 12.10.2015 Substituted Members Senator Lisa Singh (ALP, TAS) to replace Senator Jacinta Collins 5.8.2015 Senator Carol Brown (ALP, TAS) to replace Senator Jacinta Collins 3.9.2015 Senator Anne McEwen to replace Senator the Hon Joe Ludwig for 18.9.2015 Participating Members Senator Scott Ludlam (AG, WA) Senator Nick McKim (AG, TAS) Senator the Hon Jan McLucas (ALP, QLD) Senator Nova Peris (ALP, NT) Senator Larissa Waters (AG, QLD) Secretariat Ms Sophie Dunstone, Committee Secretary Ms Shennia Spillane, Principal Research Officer Ms Leah Ferris, Senior Research Officer Mr Hari Gupta, Senior Research Officer Mr Joshua Wrest, Research Officer Ms Jo-Anne Holmes, Administrative Officer Suite S1.61 Telephone: (02) 6277 3560 Parliament House Fax: (02) 6277 5794 CANBERRA ACT 2600 Email: [email protected] iii iv Table of contents Members of the committee ..............................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • Report:Adequacy of Existing Offences in the Commonwealth Criminal
    The Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs References Committee Adequacy of existing offences in the Commonwealth Criminal Code and of state and territory criminal laws to capture cyberbullying March 2018 Commonwealth of Australia 2018 ISBN 978-1-76010-739-0 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. This document was produced by the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs Committee secretariat and printed by the Senate Printing Unit, Department of the Senate, Parliament House, Canberra. ii Members of the committee Members Senator Louise Pratt (ALP, WA) (Chair) Senator the Hon Ian Macdonald (LNP, QLD) (Deputy Chair) Senator Kimberley Kitching (ALP, VIC) Senator Nick McKim (AG, TAS) Senator Jim Molan AO, DSC (LP, NSW) (from 05.02.2018) Senator Murray Watt (ALP, QLD) Former members Senator David Fawcett (LP, SA) (until 05.02.2018) Substituted members Senator Jordon Steele-John (AG, WA) to replace Senator Nick McKim (AG, TAS) Participating members Senator Slade Brockman (LP, WA) Senator Derryn Hinch (DHJP, VIC) Senator Rex Patrick (NXT, SA) Senator Linda Reynolds CSC (LP, WA) Secretariat Mr Tim Watling, Committee Secretary Mr Antony Paul, Senior Research Officer Ms Alexandria Moore, Administrative Officer Suite S1.61 Telephone: (02) 6277 3560 Parliament House Fax: (02) 6277 5794 CANBERRA ACT 2600 Email: [email protected] iii iv Table of contents
    [Show full text]
  • Education and Employment References Committee
    The Senate Education and Employment References Committee Corporate avoidance of the Fair Work Act 2009 September 2017 © Commonwealth of Australia 2017 ISBN: 978-1-76010-633-1 This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. This document was produced by the Senate Standing Committee on Education and Employment and printed by the Senate Printing Unit, Parliament House, Canberra. ii Membership of the Committee Members Senator Gavin Marshall, Chair, ALP, VIC Senator Linda Reynolds CSC, Deputy Chair, LP, WA (from 17 August 2017) Senator Catryna Bilyk, ALP, TAS (from 22 November 2016) Senator the Hon Jacinta Collins, ALP, VIC Senator Sarah Hanson-Young, AG, SA Senator James Paterson, LP, VIC Former members Senator Bridget McKenzie, Deputy Chair, NATS, VIC (from 13 October 2016 to 17 August 2017) Senator Deborah O'Neill, ALP, NSW (from 13 October 2016 to 8 November 2016) Senator Kimberly Kitching, ALP, VIC (from 8 November 2016 to 22 November 2016) Substitute members Senator Lee Rhiannon, AG, NSW (for Senator Sarah Hanson-Young) Participating members Senator Chris Ketter, ALP, QLD Senator Louise Pratt, ALP, WA Senator Glenn Sterle, ALP, WA Senator Murray Watt, ALP, QLD Secretariat Mr Stephen Palethorpe, Secretary Ms Natasha Rusjakovski, Principal Research Officer Ms Kate Campbell, Senior Research Officer iii Mr Matthew Hughes, Research Officer Ms Amy Walters, Research Officer Ms Jade Monaghan, Administrative Officer Mr Abe Williamson, Administrative Officer Committee web page: www.aph.gov.au/Parliamentary_Business/Committees/Senate/Education_and_Employment PO Box 6100 Ph: 02 6277 3521 Parliament House Fax: 02 6277 5706 Canberra ACT 2600 E-mail: [email protected] iv Table of Contents Table of Contents ...............................................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • THE UNIVERSITY of WESTERN AUSTRALIA LAW REVIEW Volume 42(1) May 2017
    THE UNIVERSITY OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA LAW REVIEW Volume 42(1) May 2017 Articles Ministerial Advisers and the Australian Constitution Yee‐Fui Ng .............................................................................................................. 1 All-Embracing Approaches to Constitutional Interpretation & ‘Moderate Originalism’ Stephen Puttick ........................................................................................................ 30 A Proportionate Burden: Revisiting the Constitutionality of Optional Preferential Voting Eric Chan ................................................................................................................ 57 London & New Mashonaland Exploration Co Ltd v New Mashonaland Exploration Co Ltd: Is It Authority That Directors Can Compete with the Company? Dominique Le Miere ............................................................................................... 98 Claims Relating to Possession of a Ship: Wilmington Trust Company (Trustee) v The Ship “Houston” [2016] FCA 1349 Mohammud Jaamae Hafeez‐Baig and Jordan English ......................................... 128 Intimidation, Consent and the Role of Holistic Judgments in Australian Rape Law Jonathan Crowe and Lara Sveinsson..................................................................... 136 Young Offenders Act 1984 (WA), Section 126 Special Orders: Extra Punitive Sentencing Legislation for Juveniles’ Craig Astill and William Yoo .......................................................................... 155 From Down
    [Show full text]
  • Pdf (572.33Kb)
    Dear Mr McCusker, Please find attached Enhancing Democracy in Western Australia, my submission to the review of the Western Australian Legislative Council electoral system. I am happy for it to be made public. Yours sincerely, Chris Curtis Enhancing Democracy in Western Australia Chris Curtis May 2021 The manufactured hysteria that greeted Ricky Muir’s election to the Senate and that ultimately led to the Turnbull government’s rigging the Senate voting system to favour the Greens over the micro-parties is getting an encore performance with the election of Wilson Tucker in Western Australia, despite the unremarked-upon election in both jurisdictions of many more candidates of major parties from even lower primary votes and with the added twist that most members of the panel established to investigate the matter have already endorsed, even promoted, the hysteria (https://insidestory.org.au/an-affront-to-anyone-who- believes-in-democracy/). While it is clear from this fact that submissions in support of logic and democracy have already been ruled out of consideration, it is worthwhile putting them on the public record for future historians to refer to and so that more reasonable politicians can revisit the issue if the hysteria dies down. Enhancing Democracy in Western Australia 2 Contents Purpose - - - - - - - - - - 3 Summary - - - - - - - - - - 3 1. Principles - - - - - - - - - - 5 2. The Single Transferable Vote - - - - - - - 6 3. The Irrational Complaints - - - - - - - 11 4. Party Preferences - - - - - - - - - 15 5. Imposing a Party List System - - - - - - - 17 6. The Value of Group Voting Tickets - - - - - - 18 7. The Real Issue and the Solution - - - - - - - 20 8. Personal How-to-Vote Website - - - - - - - 22 9.
    [Show full text]
  • Interim Report on All Aspects of the Conduct of the 2019 Federal Election and Matters Related Thereto
    PARLIAMENT OF THE COMMONWEALTH OF AUSTRALIA Interim report on all aspects of the conduct of the 2019 Federal Election and matters related thereto Delegation to the International Grand Committee, Dublin, Ireland Joint Standing Committee on Electoral Matters February 2020 CANBERRA © Commonwealth of Australia ISBN 978-1-76092-072-2 (Printed version) ISBN 978-1-76092-073-9 (HTML version) This work is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial- NoDerivs 3.0 Australia License. The details of this licence are available on the Creative Commons website: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/au/. Contents THE REPORT Foreword .......................................................................................................................................................... v Membership of the Committee .................................................................................................................... vi Terms of reference .......................................................................................................................................... x List of abbreviations ...................................................................................................................................... xi List of recommendations ............................................................................................................................. xii 1 Delegation report .............................................................................................. 1 Background to
    [Show full text]