In most wealthy nations all workers are entitled to annual leave. But that’s not the case in Australia – and the Albanese government’s reforms still won’t change that.
There is effectively a class of Australian workers who don’t get holiday and sick pay, no matter how long or regularly they work, simply because their employer deemed them “casual” when they began.
Many formal sector jobs are increasingly precarious and poorly paid, meaning that formal work is not an avenue to greater social equality for many people.
Casual staff often miss out on professional development and feel isolated and invisible. Team teaching helps support these staff while improving the continuity and quality of university teaching.
Universities have legitimate reasons for employing some staff on casual contracts, but the impacts of the COVID pandemic have brought long-standing problems to a head. Now is the time to act on these.
More than a dozen Australian universities have been publicly accused of underpaying staff. Some have paid millions in backpay after audits. And a big factor in wage theft is the rise of casualisation.
Even before COVID-19, 22% of international students often went without food or necessities and almost half depended on paid work to cover the rent. With many of their jobs gone, they’re now desperate.
Fabio Mattioli, The University of Melbourne y Kari Dahlgren, London School of Economics and Political Science
Labor will not win an election by cozying up to coal or weakening its climate target. Instead, it must find the common ground uniting workers in the cities and the regions - job insecurity.