ARTICLE · 19 MAY 2008

The End Looms For Workchoices

Truman Hoyle

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The Federal Government has made some "transitional" changes to the Workplace Relations Act 1996 (Cth), but the substantial changes to the Act will be introduced later this year.

AustraliaEmployment and HR

James Baxter

The Federal Government has made some "transitional" changes to the Workplace Relations Act 1996 (Cth), but the substantial changes to the Act will be introduced later this year.

The Rudd Government's first changes to WorkChoices recently passed both Houses of Parliament with Coalition support and took effect on 27 March 2008. The changes are significant in the history of workplace relations in Australia, not just because they begin the roll-back of WorkChoices, but because they mark a shift away from individually-bargained agreements (introduced by the Howard Government), and a return to enterprise-level bargaining. This includes agreements made with unions and those made directly with employees.

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