Premium
Industrial Relations Reform: Chasing a Pot of Gold at the End of the Rainbow?
Author(s) -
Borland Jeff
Publication year - 2012
Publication title -
australian economic review
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.308
H-Index - 29
eISSN - 1467-8462
pISSN - 0004-9018
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-8462.2012.00692.x
Subject(s) - industrial relations , earnings , economics , productivity , inequality , distributive property , work (physics) , labour economics , economic system , macroeconomics , finance , engineering , mechanical engineering , mathematical analysis , mathematics , management , pure mathematics
This article reviews the economy‐wide effects of the Work Choices and Fair Work reforms to Australia's industrial relations system. Outcomes examined are wages growth and earnings inequality, labour market adjustment, labour productivity growth and industrial disputes. Little evidence is found of an effect from the industrial relations reforms made in the 2000s. I argue that this is consistent with the nature of the reforms, being primarily oriented to distributive rather than efficiency goals. I finish by describing how private interest can explain current lobbying for further reform to Australia's industrial relations system.