THE national Jobs and Skills Summit concluded on Friday with outcomes for the enterprise bargaining system, and the Australian Logistics Council has published a plan to guide the government as it acts on its commitments.

The summit was held at Parliament House in Canberra from 1-2 September. It brought together unions, employers, civil society and government to propose immediate and long-term solutions to shared economic challenges.

The stated goal of the summit was to find a common ground on ways to build a bigger, better trained and more productive workforce and boost wages and living standards.

The summit’s relevance for maritime and logistics workforces was exemplified by a situation last month, in which Svitzer Australia sought to terminate its EBA with the unions representing its employees. Successful termination could have seen workers’ pay cut by almost half.

Fair work proceedings stalled when the unions obtained a four-month adjournment, but the situation prompted employment and workplace relations minister Tony Burke to criticise the company’s intentions and the “broken” bargaining system that could have seen them eventuate.

Mr Burke and Prime Minister Anthony Albanese both said at the time that unilateral termination of EBAs would be on the summit agenda.

Indeed, as the summit concluded on Friday, the Prime Minister told media, “Enterprise bargaining is not working at the moment to lift wages, enterprise bargaining is not working to boost productivity.

“The aim of our industrial relations system has to be about two things: one, boosting the economy by lifting productivity; secondly, lifting living standards by boosting wages.”

Also on Friday, Mr Burke said in a statement the message from the Jobs and Skills Summit was clear.

“The agreement-making system is broken and it’s no longer delivering for employers or workers,” he said.

“Business and unions agree we need a new approach. We need a new culture of genuine good-faith negotiation. We need to update our laws for the modern economy.

“That’s why the government will legislate to ensure workers and businesses have flexible options for reaching agreements – including removing unnecessary limitations on access to single and multi-employer agreements.”

Mr Burke said the government would also amend the Fair Work Act to give the Fair Work Commission the capacity to help workers and businesses reach agreements.

“Our changes will also close loopholes in the Fair Work Act that drive wages down,” he said.

Mr Burke also confirmed the government’s intentions to act on other summit agreements made between industry and unions.

For example, it plans to give the Fair Work Commission scope to set minimum standards in the road transport sector to improve safety.

The government has also committed to establishing a National Construction Industry Forum to bring industry and unions together to address issues such as mental health, safety, training, productivity, culture, diversity and gender equity.

Australian Logistics Council supply chain plan

The ALC responded to the summit with the release of a plan it believes would create a nationally consistent pathway to support the supply chain.

The ALC said the summit would need to deliver reform, investment and support for workplace diversification to secure the future of the freight logistics labour force and national economy.

ALC CEO Hermione Parsons said the Australian economy would come to “a grinding halt” without the freight and logistics workforce, which comprises around 1.2 million workers.

“Shelves would be empty, our world-class agricultural exports would not move from paddock to port or plate, and critical imports would be stuck,” Dr Parsons said.

“The pandemic has proven the value of the Australian transport, freight and logistics supply chain to the national economy and the summit needs to deliver real change, not just to ensure the future of freight but in the national interest.

“Each year our freight and logistics companies and infrastructure operators move about four billion tonnes of goods across Australia, 163 tonnes of freight for every person – this is an enormous task and one that is growing and it requires people to complete it.”

Dr Parsons said there is a need for greater investment in training, diversifying the workforce and addressing critical shortages across several parts of the industry.

She highlighted the shortages experienced in warehousing, infrastructure construction, truck and train driving, heavy vehicle and green vehicle mechanics, stevedores, transport planners and data managers.