Solidarity

Take a look at this breathless reporting from Brad Norington in the Government Gazette:

Businesses are using John Howard’s workplace laws to strike a better balance between work and family life, with a dramatic increase in time off allowed so employees can look after sick children or elderly relatives.

Almost 40 per cent of employers surveyed in the most detailed study since the Howard Government introduced Work Choices last year say they have increased the number of “personal carer days” available.

This is misleading. Prior to WorkChoices, workers were entitled to 10 days sick leave. Now, workers are entitled to 10 days personal or carer’s leave — which includes sick leave. In other words, you can now use your sick leave to look after your sick kids (which is a good thing), but the survey doesn’t say whether businesses are going above the bare legal minimum.

And given Norington’s lede is about “strik[ing] a better balance between work and family life”, perhaps it would have been worth reporting what HR practitioners said when they were directly asked about it? From the report (pdf):

62. ‘Operating under Work Choices will improve work-family balance within the organisation over the next three years’ (n = 934):

	Percentage
Strongly agree	5.3
Agree	13.9
Neither agree nor disagree	44.4
Disagree	23.6
Strongly disagree	12.9

Total in agreement: 19.1%. Total who disagree: 36.5%.

Even though the president of the Australian Human Resources Institute told the media “[t]here is some concern looking forward as to whether WorkChoices will be consistent with better work-life balance in the future,” it doesn’t fit The Australian’s pro-Government agenda, so it’s got to be left out.

Elsewhere: Tim Dunlop has lots more on the survey.