on industrial relations, i tend to side with the libs. and as a solicitor the bulk of whose practice involves acting for employers, you'd think i'd support the howard proposals.

but my clients are too small and/or are in the wrong industry to get advice from an employer organisation. thank goodness for that!

if employers knew the real cost of removing statutory unfair dismissal remedies, they would be going on strike. their umbrella bodies would be joining with ALP premiers and threatening a challenge in the High Court.

no such luck. as usual, employers are too busy running their business to understand the realities behind legislative proposals.

employers complained about the GST. until they realised how useful this new tax was in forcing small business to watch its cash flow.

employers who complain about unfair dismissal should wait until unfair dismissals are abolished. let them go broke when a handful of their employees bring claims for unfair contract or breach of the Trade Practices Act. or let them pull their hair out when they get their lawyers' cost estimate to defend a prosecution for breachs of OH&S laws arising from allegedlt legal instant dismissals. and then let them choke as they realise no insurer is available to bankroll their defense.

instead of getting rid of the cheap efficient statutory unfair dismissal remedy, mr howard should be encouraging insurers to provide industrial conflict cover. and why wouldn't insurers provide such cover? apparently many insurers are already offering it.

anyway, it is not for me to tell employers and their friends in conservative politics how to suck eggs

An interesting article Andrew. Also, interesting comment "lrfan". Undoubtedly, howards proposed elimination of unfair dismissal laws and the proposal to implement(Australian) work place agreement laws appear aimed at weakening unionism in the work place. Currently the ACTU is mounting an $8m dollar advertising campaign against this event.
It is short sighted thinking to expect workers to accept willingly , major losses in pay and conditions. It is also short sighted to believe, as obviously does howard believe, that rule by fear (of loosing jobs)is an acceptable alternative to willing co-operation on the work site, of a fairly treated work force. It stands as a sad reality in Australia, the clash of ideologies and the "tit for tat' relationships between employers and employees. It seems we can safely leave the continueing battle in the hands of john howard and company. Could there be any smaller minds than they to look on?