Have you heard about the Better Off Overall Test? It's in the news right now, and is a key issue in this year's Federal Election.
The Better Off Overall Test (aka BOOT) is:
A test the Fair Work Commission uses to assess registered agreements against awards. The registered agreement is compared to the relevant award to ensure the employee is better off overall under the registered agreement in order for it to be approved.
According to the Sydney Morning Herald:
Labor is warning the Coalition will resurrect a proposal to water down laws that protect workers from losing money in pay negotiations as it targets Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s industrial relations plans while cost of living pressures start to bite.
The opposition has seized on comments from Morrison over the weekend in which he said he would bring back the omnibus industrial relations bill, which was gutted in the Senate during the pandemic.
According to The Age:
Scott Morrison said during a press conference in Adelaide “there are no major changes to the BOOT at all”. But he said the reforms he was looking to revive were “about simplification and ensuring that there’s greater flexibility to ensure “these companies can work with what is an often complex industrial relations system, which cost jobs, costs higher wages, and it costs the Australian economy”.
ACTU secretary Sally McManus accused Morrison of “saying one thing and doing another. His plans to cut wages and undermine the rights of working people are still in place.”
During the televised Leader's Debate on Sky News Anthony Albanese said, "If you’re getting rid of the Better Off Overall Test, it means you don’t want people to be better off overall."
“If you’re getting rid of the Better Off Overall Test, it means you don’t want people to be better off overall.”
— Australian Services Union (@asu_nsw_act) April 20, 2022
- @AlboMP at the #leadersdebate talking about Scott Morrison’s Government plans to change our Industrial Relations system.
Michaelia Cash and Scott Morrison are lying. The changes they put forward and have now recommitted to have several permanent changes to the BOOT test which weaken workers rights https://t.co/QrcltqDZnX
— Sally McManus (@sallymcmanus) April 20, 2022
Read more:
Sydney Morning Herald: Labor warns Coalition will scrap the ‘better off overall’ pay negotiation safeguard
The Guardian: Fact Check: has the coalition ruled our IR changes that would cut pay?
Sydney Morning Herald: Business still want changes to BOOT as the workplace reform causes political stoush