WORLD CONGRESS OF THE INTERNATIONAL SOCIETY OF LABOUR LAW AND SOCIAL SECURITY LAW

Sydney

Tuesday, 1 September 2009

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

First, may I acknowledge the traditional owners of the land we meet on - and pay my respects to their elders, both past and present.

Welcome to Sydney, and welcome to the 19th World Congress of the International Society of Labour Law and Social Security Law.

The world is becoming a smaller place. Ideas, perspectives and values are spreading across continents and borders more quickly than ever.

This is certainly true for lawyers, policy-makers and others interested in labour law and social security law. 

None of us can afford to ignore what is happening in these areas overseas.

Put simply, in this globally competitive world, what happens in one country rebounds on others. To maintain living standards, rather than see a 'race to the bottom', we need to confer and collaborate.

I am sure that the Congress will be an invaluable opportunity for this distinguished gathering of international experts to share different perspectives.

Today, I'd like to say a few words about some relevant aspects of the Rudd Government's active engagement with the international community, including through the United Nations and the International Labour Organisation in particular.

I'd also like to describe the influence of international law on industrial relations and on economic, social and cultural rights in Australia - particularly the right to social security.

Australia's Role in the United Nations Charter

First though, can I set the scene by recalling the influential role that Australia played, more than 60 years ago, in ensuring that the UN's mandate would include promoting the economic and social rights of all.

Australia's leader to the San Francisco Conference, at which the UN Charter was adopted, was Herbert 'Doc' Evatt - then the Minister for External Affairs and the Attorney-General.

Doc Evatt had a passionate commitment to social and economic welfare as an integral part of a person? fundamental human rights. Indeed, he considered that these rights would be one of the pillars on which a better post-War order must be founded. 

"Peace and security" he said,"must rest on economic justice and social security." [1]

Doc Evatt was instrumental in negotiating Article 55 of the UN Charter, which provides that the UN's mandate includes promoting 'higher standards of living, full employment, and conditions of economic and social progress and development'.

Australia was also influential in negotiating article 56 - which enjoins all member States to take joint and separate action to achieve these purposes.

Your conference furthers that objective.

It is fitting that Evatt was later the President of the General Assembly at the time of the adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights in 1948.

Doc Evatt also held the Federal seat which I now hold - Barton.

The Australian Government shares Doc's passions and is committed to a strong and effective international order based on respect for the rule of law - underpinned by values of fairness and decency.

A more stable and secure international system is fundamental to all our interests.

To help achieve this, we are committed to playing an active, constructive role in international affairs, and to exercising our responsibility to shape, and help others shape, a stronger, rules-based order for the modern world.

Industrial Relations

In the field of industrial relations, the Government is committed to ensuring that Australia? domestic industrial relations arrangements are consistent with our international obligations.

We are actively working with the International Labour Organisation (ILO) - particularly within our region - to develop and promote international labour standards.

The Australian Government would like to be considered a champion of respect for internationally recognised workplace rights. In particular, the right to join a union and pursue the common interests of workers free from coercion and violence.

Through the leadership of the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations, Julia Gillard, the Government has been actively pursuing these ideals.

One of our major achievements has been the passage of the Fair Work Act.

This Act reflects the ideals championed by the ILO. It has enterprise bargaining, in good faith, at its heart. It allows workplaces to become more productive and competitive without stripping away basic pay and conditions.

The Act was recently singled out for praise by the Chair of the ILO's Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations.

The Government is also committed to introducing paid parental leave, which was announced in May this year. At present, Australia is one of just two OECD countries without a national statutory paid parental leave scheme. By introducing the scheme here, we will provide benefits commensurate with international standards and will encourage workers to stay connected to their jobs.

This is a vital investment in improved productivity and workforce participation.

As a result of these reforms, the Government is now considering its position on Australia's reservation to the obligation in the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women, on the requirement for maternity leave with pay or comparable social benefits.

Human Rights

In terms of our commitment to human rights, the Government believes in the fundamental equality of all people.

Australia is a long standing party to the International Covenant on Economic Social and Cultural Rights. In May, Australia was examined on our fourth periodic report under the Covenant by the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights.

This Committee noted too with appreciation the Fair Work Act - commenting in particular on its new employment standards and the improvements it makes to the protection of the right to work.

The Committee also made a number of recommendations about ways in which compliance with the obligations in the Covenant could be improved - including in the areas of industrial relations and social security.

It recommended, for example, that Australia continue strengthening its efforts to enhance equality between men and women in the work place - in particular, initiatives aimed at implementing the principle of equal pay for equal work.

I commend the work of the NSW Industrial Relations Commission for its initiatives in this area.

The Committee also recommended that Australia take additional measures to ensure universal coverage of the social security system to include newly arrived immigrants and indigenous people.

The Government will be carefully considering these recommendations and will report back to the Committee after appropriate consultation.

International Labour Organisation

The Government also recognises the important role the ILO plays in shaping the world of work. We support increasing the ILO's engagement with the Asia-Pacific region and we welcome the adoption of the 'Global Jobs Pact' by the ILO at its recent conference in June.

The pact outlines policy suggestions that Governments can use to respond to the global financial crisis by prioritising jobs and social protection.

The pact complements measures that the Rudd Government has already taken, such as the Jobs and Training Compact with retrenched workers and communities affected by the global recession.

Another initiative of the ILO that we strongly support is the evolution of the Maritime Labour Convention.

The Convention seeks to draw together a large number of separate labour conventions related to the maritime industry under the one banner. As such, it seeks to consolidate and develop new standards.

Accordingly, we are currently working hard with State and Territory Governments and with unions and employer associations, to ensure compliance with the standards set in the Convention.

Australia's engagement with the ILO is best exemplified however, by a new partnership agreement to support the ILO's Better Work Program, which is due to come into operation on 1 July 2010.

The Program will seek to identify new areas of technical assistance that the ILO can deliver in the region. This agreement marks the first time that Australia has committed to working with the ILO beyond our usual ordinary membership and carries with it an investment of $15 million dollars for the first two years, with further funding to be determined in 2012.

The Partnership is the right thing to do and it is very much in the interests of Australian workers to ensure that labour standards throughout our region are constantly improved.

Conclusion

The Australian Government places great importance on effective engagement with international institutions to help shape a stronger, rules-based order for the modern world.

This includes engagement with the ILO and the United Nations human rights system, including the Committee on Economic Social and Cultural Rights.

The standards set by these bodies have been influential in informing the Government's thinking on a number of the subjects you'll be deliberating over the coming days.

I'm sure that this Conference will be a stimulating and rewarding experience for you all and I look forward to hearing the outcomes.

Thank you.

[1] Speech at Plenary Session, in Current Notes on International Affairs, vol 16, no 4, 1945, p 101.