Do you approve or disapprove of the Productivity Commission recommendation to cut Sunday penalty rates to the same level as Saturday rates for workers in hospitality, entertainment and retail?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | Vote Other | Full time worker | Part time worker | |||
| Total approve | 32% | 24% | 51% | 21% | 32% | 40% | 27% | ||
| Total disapprove | 54% | 65% | 40% | 66% | 57% | 47% | 62% | ||
| Strongly approve | 9% | 6% | 16% | 4% | 7% | 11% | 5% | ||
| Approve | 23% | 18% | 35% | 17% | 25% | 29% | 22% | ||
| Disapprove | 25% | 29% | 21% | 31% | 19% | 22% | 31% | ||
| Strongly disapprove | 29% | 36% | 19% | 35% | 38% | 25% | 31% | ||
| Don’t know | 14% | 11% | 10% | 13% | 12% | 13% | 11% |
32% approve of the Productivity Commission recommendation to cut Sunday penalty rates to the same level as Saturday rates for workers in hospitality, entertainment and retail and 54% disapprove.
About half Liberal/National voters approve but other voter groups strongly disapprove.
47% of fulltime workers and 62% of part-time workers disapprove. 57% of people earning less than $1,000 pw disapprove.
Q. Do you think people who are required to work outside of normal hours – like night shifts, weekends or public holidays – should receive a higher hourly rate of pay?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/Nat | Vote Greens | Vote Other | Work full time | Work part time | May 2013 | Jan 2015 | ||||
| Yes | 81% | 90% | 73% | 81% | 82% | 76% | 85% | 81% | 81% | |||
| No | 13% | 8% | 20% | 9% | 11% | 15% | 9% | 12% | 13% | |||
| Don’t know | 7% | 3% | 7% | 10% | 7% | 8% | 6% | 7% | 6% |
81% think that people who are required to work outside of normal hours should receive a higher hourly rate of pay and 13% think they should not. There has been no change of opinion on this issue since this question was first asked in May 2013.
A large majority of all demographic and voter groups agree that worker should receive higher rates for working outside normal hours – although Labor voters (90%) and Greens voters (81%) are somewhat more likely to support this than Liberal/National voters (73%). 85% of part-time workers agree compared to 76% of full-time workers.
Q. What do you think would be the more likely result of cutting penalty rates for hospitality and retail workers?
| Total | Vote Labor | Vote Lib/ Nat |
Vote Greens | Vote Other | Work full time | Work part time | Jan 2015 | ||||
| Businesses will make bigger profits | 61% | 74% | 50% | 68% | 68% | 57% | 58% | 63% | |||
| Businesses will employ more workers | 20% | 12% | 31% | 18% | 23% | 27% | 17% | 18% | |||
| Don’t know | 19% | 14% | 19% | 13% | 10% | 16% | 25% | 18% |
61% think that cutting penalty rates will more likely result in businesses making bigger profits while 20% think the more likely result will be that businesses will employ more workers – a similar result to the last time this question was asked in January.
A substantial majority of all demographic groups believe it will more likely result in bigger profits for businesses. Those most likely to think it will mean businesses will make bigger profits were Labor voters (74%), Greens voters (68%) and incomes less than $1,000 pw (67%)
Only Liberal/National voters have a somewhat different view – 50% think it is more likely to result in bigger profits and 31% more jobs.
Q. Do you think people who are required to work outside of normal hours – like night shifts, weekends or public holidays – should receive a higher hourly rate of pay?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote Other |
|
Work full time |
Work part time |
|
May 2013 |
|
| Yes |
81% |
91% |
69% |
91% |
83% |
80% |
84% |
81% |
|||
| No |
13% |
7% |
23% |
7% |
11% |
14% |
10% |
12% |
|||
| Don’t know |
6% |
2% |
8% |
2% |
6% |
6% |
5% |
7% |
81% think that people who are required to work outside of normal hours should receive a higher hourly rate of pay and 13% think they should not. There has been no change of opinion on this issue since this question was asked in May 2013.
A large majority of all demographic and voter groups agree that worker should receive higher rates for working outside normal hours – although Labor voters (91%) and Greens voters (91%) are somewhat more likely to support this than Liberal/National voters (69%).
Q. Would you support or oppose cutting weekend and public holiday penalty rates for hospitality and retail workers?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote Other |
|
Work full time |
Work part time |
|
| Total support |
23% |
16% |
37% |
13% |
12% |
29% |
15% |
||
| Total oppose |
68% |
76% |
53% |
82% |
77% |
62% |
71% |
||
| Strongly support |
9% |
7% |
16% |
5% |
3% |
12% |
6% |
||
| Support |
14% |
9% |
21% |
8% |
9% |
17% |
9% |
||
| Oppose |
32% |
26% |
35% |
27% |
43% |
33% |
23% |
||
| Strongly oppose |
36% |
50% |
18% |
55% |
34% |
29% |
48% |
||
| Don’t know |
10% |
8% |
10% |
5% |
10% |
10% |
14% |
68% oppose cutting weekend and public holiday penalty rates for hospitality and retail workers and 23% support.
While a majority of all demographic and voter groups oppose cutting penalty rates, those most likely to oppose were Labor voters (76%), Greens voters (82%), women (73%) and those aged 45-64 (76%). 37% of Liberal/National voters and 36% of those aged 65+ support cutting penalty rates.
Q. What do you think would be the more likely result of cutting penalty rates for hospitality and retail workers?
|
Total |
|
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
Vote Other |
|
Work full time |
Work part time |
|
| Businesses will make bigger profits |
63% |
75% |
50% |
77% |
66% |
61% |
68% |
||
| Businesses will employ more workers |
18% |
10% |
32% |
8% |
18% |
22% |
14% |
||
| Don’t know |
18% |
15% |
18% |
15% |
15% |
16% |
18% |
63% think that cutting penalty rates will more likely result in businesses making bigger profits while 18% think the more likely result will be that businesses will employ more workers.
A substantial majority (over 60%) of all demographic groups believe it will more likely result in bigger profits for businesses. Only Liberal/National voters have a somewhat different view – 50% think it is more likely to result in bigger profits and 32% more jobs.
20 May 2013, 200513, penalty rates, rates of pay
Q. Do you think people who are required to work outside of normal hours – like night shifts, weekends or public holidays – should receive a higher hourly rate of pay?
|
Total |
Vote Labor |
Vote Lib/Nat |
Vote Greens |
|
| Yes |
81% |
88% |
74% |
92% |
| No |
12% |
7% |
19% |
5% |
| Don’t know |
7% |
5% |
7% |
3% |
81% of respondents agreed that people who are required to work outside of normal hours – like night shifts, weekends or public holidays – should receive a higher hourly rate of pay.
79% of full-time workers and 88% of part-time workers agreed.
28 May 2012, 280512, 3Q Ep 13, actu, business lobby, casual workers, Jackie Woods, penalty rates
Jackie Woods says the bosses’ enthusiasm for casual workers is self interest at work.
Australia’s business lobby has donned its loose cotton pants and signed up for yoga. And like many fitness enthusiasts, they can’t stop talking about it. It’s flexibility, flexibility, flexibility.
Profits down, or just not high enough? Penalty rates getting on your nerves? Productivity sluggish? For big business, workplace ‘flexibility’ is the cure-all.
The employer-driven agenda to increase workplace flexibility has led to a rise in casual work arrangements in Australia, a sleeper issue catapulted into the headlines by the ACTU campaign on insecure work.
This has led to some extraordinary claims from business about the social benefits of casual work that follow a few predictable lines of argument.
Read more at the Drum