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  • Jun, 2012

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    Abbott And His Business Cronies Channel Mark Twain But Facts Are A Bitch

    Mark Twain once said, perhaps borrowing from others, “A lie can travel halfway around the world while the truth is putting on its shoes”. And you can only think: Tony Abbott and the business p.r. machine must have that branded on their arms as a guide because every time they open their mouths to talk about the economy, jobs and workers what escapes are lies on top of lies. The problem, though, is that the truth eventually laces up its shoes and catches up. Take productivity.

    If you haven’t been living in a cave for the past year, or you’ve been maybe lucky enough to avoid reading the slavish traditional press that too often regurgitates every press release it is handed, you’ve heard the mantra that Australian workers just aren’t productive enough. Rubbish.

    The Australian Council of Trade Unions is out with its June 2012 Economic Report. What caught our eye was the productivity section. Surprise, surprise:

    Whichever way the productivity figures are examined, the numbers in the latest National Accounts are strong. Labour productivity in the market sector rose by 2.3% in the quarter and 5.3% over the year, the strongest annual growth in a decade.

    And what about any dips in productivity here and there? Well, it has nothing to do with industrial relations and Fair Work, which is what Abbott and his business buddies keep yapping about. As the report reiterates:

    Investments in skills and infrastructure are the sources of real productivity growth, it was argued. We also pointed out that there is consensus among economists that some portion of the growth slowdown is due to factors related to the mining boom, some of which are temporary and will be reversed as projects are constructed and begin to generate output. [emphasis added]

    So, the truth has overtaken the lies. That will not deter those people who have to lie because they have one mission in life: figure out how to shake down workers, pick their pockets for every dime they can get and do it all wrapped around some phony economic double-speak that doesn’t even pass a basic smell test of truth.


    @jonathantasini

  • Jun, 2012

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    Party trust to handle important election issues

    Q.  Which party would you trust most to handle the following issues?

     

    Labor

    Liberal

    Greens

    Don’t know

    Difference

    18 Jun 12

    Difference

    5 Dec 11

    Management of the economy

    26%

    44%

    3%

    27%

    -18

    -18

    Ensuring a quality education for all children

    33%

    35%

    5%

    26%

    -2

    -2

    Ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system

    30%

    36%

    7%

    27%

    -6

    -3

    Protecting the environment

    17%

    21%

    38%

    24%

    +17

    +14

    A fair industrial relations system

    36%

    30%

    6%

    28%

    +6

    +4

    Political leadership

    21%

    37%

    7%

    36%

    -16

    -17

    Addressing climate change

    18%

    24%

    31%

    27%

    +7

    +6

    Controlling interest rates

    22%

    40%

    3%

    35%

    -18

    -18

    Protecting Australian jobs and protection of local industries

    29%

    35%

    6%

    31%

    -6

    -3

    Ensuring a quality water supply

    16%

    28%

    23%

    33%

    -12

    -12

    Housing affordability

    22%

    33%

    5%

    39%

    -11

    -10

    Ensuring a fair taxation system

    26%

    36%

    5%

    32%

    -10

    -9

    Security and the war on terrorism

    18%

    40%

    4%

    38%

    -22

    -19

    Treatment of asylum seekers

    16%

    36%

    13%

    36%

    -20

    -19

    Managing population growth

    17%

    36%

    7%

    40%

    -19

    -17

    Note – Differences are calculated by subtracting Liberal % from Labor % – except for the two issues on which the Greens lead in which case it is Greens minus Liberal.

    Labor does not have a substantial lead over the Liberal Party on any item measured. The Liberal Party has maintained strong leads on management of the economy, controlling interest rates, political leadership and security and the war on terrorism.

    There is little difference between Labor and the Liberals for ensuring a quality education for all children, ensuring the quality of Australia’s health systerm and protecting Australian jobs and protection of local industries. Overall, there has been very little change in these results since December.

  • Feb, 2012

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    Industrial Relations Laws

    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 Full time workers Part time workers
    Favour employers 25% 29% 23% 36% 27% 25%
    Favour workers 24% 15% 39% 12% 26% 20%
    Balance the interests of employers and workers 34% 43% 25% 37% 34% 38%
    Don’t know 17% 13% 13% 16% 13% 17%

    Respondents were evenly divided over whether Australia’s industrial relations laws favour employers or workers – 25% think they favour employers, 24% favour workers and 34% think they balance the interests of both.

    Labor voters are more likely to think they balance workers and employers interests (43%) while Liberal/National voters are more likely to thin they favour workers (39%). Only 15% of Labor voters and 12% of Greens voters think the laws favour workers. Comments »

  • Oct, 2011

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    Jobs reform

    Q. To what extent do you agree that the following measures will improve job creation and investment in Australia?

    Total Agree Total Disagree Strongly Agree Agree Disagree Strongly disagree Don’t know
    Increasing the number of apprenticeships 88% 4% 38% 50% 4% 0% 7%
    Giving incentives to companies that invest in research and development 79% 8% 26% 53% 7% 1% 12%
    Boosting investment in renewable energy technologies 75% 11% 30% 45% 8% 3% 14%
    Requiring companies to use Australian made steel in large infrastructure projects 73% 11% 27% 46% 9% 2% 15%
    Implementing industrial relations changes that give more flexibility to business 57% 19% 13% 44% 14% 5% 24%
    Bringing back tariffs on products imported from overseas 52% 29% 16% 36% 20% 9% 19%
    Introducing industrial relations reforms to make it easier to hire and fire people 41% 41% 13% 28% 29% 12% 18%

    Increasing the number of apprenticeships (88% total agree) is the most popular measure for improving job creation and investment in Australia, followed by giving incentives to companies that invest in research and development (79% total agree) and boosting investment in renewable energy technologies (75%).

    Requiring companies to use Australian made steel in large infrastructure projects is also strongly endorsed by respondents (73% total agree).

    The least popular measure is introducing industrial relations reforms to make it easier to hire and fire people (41% total disagree).   Asked with a different emphasis, there is significantly less opposition to the suggestion of implementing industrial relations changes that give more flexibility to business (19% total disagree).

    Comments »

  • Oct, 2011

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    Jobs reform by Voting Intention

    Q. To what extent do you agree that the following measures will improve job creation and investment in Australia?

    Total Agree Total Agree – Labor Total Agree – Lib/Nat Total Agree- Greens
    Increasing the number of apprenticeships 88% 89% 91% 87%
    Giving incentives to companies that invest in research and development 79% 80% 83% 83%
    Boosting investment in renewable energy technologies 75% 80% 71% 88%
    Requiring companies to use Australian made steel in large infrastructure projects 73% 77% 77% 69%
    Implementing industrial relations changes that give more flexibility to business 57% 45% 75% 41%
    Bringing back tariffs on products imported from overseas 52% 52% 58% 40%
    Introducing industrial relations reforms to make it easier to hire and fire people 41% 26% 65% 18%

    Increasing the number of apprenticeships, giving incentives to companies that invest in research and development, and requiring companies to use Australia made steel in large infrastructure projects all receive a consistent level of endorsement across party lines.

    Labor voters are more likely to agree with boosting investment in renewable energy technologies (80% total agree) as a measure to improve job creation and investment in Australia, as are Greens voters (88% total agree).

    Labor voters are less likely to agree with implementing industrial relations changes that give more flexibility to business (45% total agree) and introducing industrial relations reforms to make it easier to hire and fire people (26% total agree).

    Coalition voters are the most likely to agree with the industrial relations reforms, with 75% agreeing with implementing industrial relations changes that give more flexibility to business and 65% agreeing with introducing industrial relations reforms to make it easier to hire and fire people.

    Comments »

  • Sep, 2011

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    Productivity

    Q. Some business leaders have recently claimed that to increase productivity, industrial relations laws need to be changed to give businesses more flexibility around how they employ workers, including re-introducing individual contracts. Do you agree or disagree?

    Total Vote Labor Vote Lib/Nat Vote Greens
    Total agree 40% 27% 59% 17%
    Total disagree 42% 61% 24% 61%
    Strongly agree 11% 6% 19% 2%
    Agree 29% 21% 40% 15%
    Disagree 22% 29% 17% 23%
    Strongly disagree 20% 32% 7% 38%
    Don’t know 18% 11% 17% 21%

    Opinions about the need for changes to industrial laws to increase productivity were divided. 40% agreed with the need to change IR laws and 42% disagreed. 61% of Labor voters and Greens voters disagreed, while 59% of Liberal/National voters agreed.

    Those aged 35-54 tended to disagree (35% agree/47% disagree) while those aged under 35 (40%/34%) and 55+ (48%/42%) were more likely to agree. 46% of full-time workers disagreed and 43% agreed.

    Comments »

  • Jul, 2010

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    Party best at Handling Issues

    Q. And which party would you trust most to handle the following issues?

      Labor Liberal Greens Don’t know
    A fair industrial relations system 45% 24% 5% 26%
    Ensuring a quality education for all children 41% 25% 4% 29%
    Australian jobs and protection of local industries 42% 28% 3% 27%
    Ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system  38% 27% 4% 31%
    Ensuring a fair taxation system 36% 28% 4% 32%
    Housing affordability 30% 24% 4% 41%
    Political leadership 33% 30% 5% 33%
    Ensuring a quality water supply 23% 23% 22% 32%
    Managing population growth 24% 27% 9% 40%
    Security and the war on terrorism 25% 30% 3% 42%
    Management of the economy 32% 38% 3% 27%
    Treatment of asylum seekers 23% 29% 11% 37%
    Controlling interest rates 28% 35% 2% 35%
    Addressing climate change 18% 16% 36% 29%
    Protecting the environment 17% 13% 47% 23%

     Labor have a substantial lead over the Liberal Party as the best party to handle a fair industrial relations system (+21%), quality education for all (+16%), Australian jobs and protection of industries (+14%) and ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system (+11%).

     The Liberal Party’s main strengths were controlling interest rates (+7%), treatment of asylum seekers (+6%) and management of the economy  (+6%).

    The Greens were thought to be the best party for protecting the environment (47%) and addressing climate change (36%). Comments »

  • May, 2010

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    Important Election Issues

    Q8. Which are the three most important issues in deciding how you would vote at a Federal election? (Number from 1 to 3 where 1 is the most important, 2 the second most important, etc)

      One Two Three Total Total

    25 Jan 10

    Difference
    Management of the economy 34% 18% 10% 62% 63% -1%
    Ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system  14% 20% 16% 50% 48% +2%
    Australian jobs and protection of local industries 8% 10% 11% 29% 33% -4%
    Ensuring a fair taxation system 5% 8% 9% 22% 18% +4%
    Ensuring a quality education for all children 3% 7% 9% 19% 23% -4%
    Housing affordability 6% 5% 6% 17% 14% +3%
    Controlling interest rates 5% 5% 6% 16% 15% +1%
    Managing population growth 3% 4% 7% 14% *  
    Protecting the environment 3% 5% 5% 13% 16% -3%
    Political leadership 5% 3% 4% 12% 23% -11%
    Addressing climate change 4% 4% 4% 12% 16% -4%
    Fair immigration policies 3% 4% 3% 10% *  
    A fair industrial relations system 2% 4% 3% 9% 10% -1%
    Ensuring a quality water supply 2% 2% 3% 7% 12% -5%
    Security and the war on terrorism 2% 2% 3% 7% 9% -2%

    *Not asked in January 2010 poll

     62% of people surveyed rate management of the economy is one of their three most important issues, followed by 50% that rate ensuring the quality of Australia’s health system and 29% that rate Australian jobs and protection of local industries as one of their three most important issues.

     Only 9% rate a fair industrial relations system as one of their three most important issues and 7% rate security and the war on terrorism and ensuring a quality water supply. 

     The major change since the previous survey in January, was a drop in the importance of political leadership from 23% to 12%. Ensuring a fairer tax system has risen slightly from 18% to 22%. Comments »

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