Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has ducked repeated questioning on whether he supports the Fair Work Commission's decision to cut penalty rates for hundreds of thousands of Australian workers, instead backing the independence of the body and indicating the government wants a long-term, phased introduction of the pay cuts that would soften the blow for workers.
Mr Turnbull has also backed the argument put forward by employers that lowering penalty rates frees up businesses to stay open longer and hire more people, which was critical to the commission's ruling but is disputed by opponents.
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Malcolm Turnbull skirts the question over whether decreasing Sunday penalty rates will lead to more jobs but Bill Shorten is having none of it. Courtesy ABC News 24.
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PM's penalty rates problem
Malcolm Turnbull skirts the question over whether decreasing Sunday penalty rates will lead to more jobs but Bill Shorten is having none of it. Courtesy ABC News 24.
Since the commission's decision last week, the government has come under increasing pressure from the Labor Party to express support or intervene to stop it. But the Prime Minister has steadfastly deflected the calls by labelling Opposition Leader Bill Shorten a hypocrite for abandoning his previous support for the independence of the commission.
Questioned on ABC radio on Thursday morning, Mr Turnbull said he supports the commission as "the expert body making the decision on this".
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"If you're asking me do I think that the penalty rate for a public holiday should be reduced in one award from 250 per cent to 225 per cent, that is a matter that the government has not decided. That is a matter for the Fair Work Commission. This is very important," he said.
Asked at least four times if he would express a personal view on the ruling, the Prime Minister repeated support for the commission and said "their decisions should be respected and accepted and that is exactly what Bill Shorten had always said and I know you don't like me saying that but the fact is he's a backflipper and he's a hypocrite on this".
Last week's ruling will see Sunday penalty rates for retail, fast food, hospitality and pharmacy workers reduced from July onwards.
The government is facing a political firestorm on the matter, with the union movement gearing up to make it an election issue and Labor promising to legislate to ensure workers don't have their pay reduced.
Mr Turnbull said take-home pay is protected from reductions in modern awards and that the commission has "the intent and the tools to ensure that the changes are phased in so that workers are not – as far as possible – worse off in terms of this transition".
He indicated government support for a gradual transition over enough years that "the employee's overall pay packet increases and offsets the phased-in reduction".
This approach would still reduce real wages but mitigate the penalty rate cuts with the natural increase in base pay.
Liberal senator and former Abbott government employment minister Eric Abetz has called on the Fair Work Commission to protect existing pay rates so "no worker is worse off" while new employees receive the reduced amount.
In an opinion piece for Fairfax Media, Senator Abetz said he supported the commission's ruling because it helps small business and job creation but urged that it be implemented in a "fair and equitable manner".
But on Thursday morning Mr Turnbull pointed to the commission's opposition to "red-circling", which introduces the two pay levels for existing and new employees.
He also said "the evidence seems to be very strong that if you have lower rates on a Sunday or public holiday then there is more incentive, if you like, it's more affordable for businesses to employ people. That's common sense."
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