Abstract
The issue of weekend penalty rates has been a contentious political issue in recent times. In its recent review of Modern Awards, the Fair Work Commission determined a reduction in Sunday penalty rates, arguing that this would result in increased employment and hours in Retail and Hospitality sectors. In this paper, we present a critique of the evidence before the Commission relating to employment creation. We also present survey findings of workers' employment before and after the penalty rate reform. In the short run we find that there was no discernible positive impact on affected workers' employment outcomes.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 270-286 |
Number of pages | 17 |
Journal | Economic Papers |
Volume | 37 |
Issue number | 3 |
Early online date | 23 Jul 2018 |
DOIs | |
Publication status | Published - Sept 2018 |
Keywords
- Fair Work Commission
- Hospitality Industry
- Labour Regulations
- Penalty Rates
- Retail Industry