Q. Business groups have said that Australia’s industrial relations laws favour workers and unions and should be changed so that businesses can increase productivity and have more flexibility with their workforce. Do you think Australia’s industrial relations laws favour employers or workers or do they balance the interests of workers and employers?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote other |
|
Full time workers |
Part time workers |
July 2012 |
|
| Favour employers |
23% |
33% |
15% |
22% |
26% |
27% |
23% |
20% |
||
| Favour workers |
17% |
11% |
28% |
9% |
17% |
18% |
15% |
26% |
||
| Balance the interests of employers and workers |
30% |
33% |
30% |
32% |
32% |
33% |
29% |
34% |
||
| Don’t know |
30% |
22% |
27% |
38% |
26% |
22% |
34% |
20% |
Respondents were divided over whether Australia’s industrial relations laws favour employers or workers – 23% think they favour employers, 17% favour workers and 30% think they balance the interests of both.
Labor voters are more likely to think they favour employers (33%) while Liberal/National voters are more likely to think they favour workers (28%). Only 11% of Labor voters and 9% of Greens voters think the laws favour workers.
Since this question was asked in July 2012, those thinking industrial relations laws favour workers has dropped from 26% to 17% and those who could not give an opinion has increased from 20% to 30%.