Treasurer Peter Costello’s release of a new Intergenerational Report today shows that the Howard Government is failing to lift Australia’s productivity and participation rates in preparation for an ageing population says the ACTU.
Commenting on the Intergenerational Report released today, ACTU President Sharan Burrow said:
“Boosting productivity and lifting workforce participation are the key to sustaining our economy while our population ages and yet the Howard Government is taking us in the wrong direction on both fronts.
“The Government says that Australia’s future depends on strong productivity growth and high rates of participation in the labour market yet the Treasurer has demonstrated no plan for either.
It is axiomatic that strong productivity growth is vital to preparing for the cost of an ageing population and yet Australia’s productivity has slumped under the Howard Government’s economic management and lack of investment in skills and training in recent years.
Despite the Government’s claims that its new IR laws would boost productivity, labour productivity in Australia (GDP per hour worked) declined in trend terms by 0.3% for the first nine months of the new IR laws — from March to December 2006.
Australia’s productivity growth is now one third below the annual average for OECD countries since 2000.
In addition, the Howard Government is putting at risk higher rates of participation in the job market with a lack of affordable childcare and lower wages posing major barriers to women in the job market.
Australia’s employment rate for mothers with pre-school age children is the second lowest of major OECD countries with childcare remaining one of the top barriers to increasing women’s job participation.
ABS data shows there are around 250,000 women who want to work or would work more hours if they could but family factors and a lack of affordable childcare are preventing them,” said Ms Burrow.
Under the new IR laws the incentive for women to work has also declined with wages for full time women dropping in real terms.
Women in the private sector have experienced a fall in full time earnings of -1.8% since the new IR laws took effect.
“Workers in the retail, hospitality, health and community services have been worst affected with many losing overtime pay, weekend penalty rates and public holiday pay under the Federal Government’s AWA individual contracts,” said Ms Burrow.