Family Provisions and WorkChoices: Testing Times

By Sue Williamson and Marian Baird

The WorkChoices legislation restricted access to the family provisions set out by the test case that was concluded in the AIRC seven months earlier.

The authors examine the award variations adopted before WorkChoices. The award variations, although seemingly shortlived, provide valuable social norms and industrial mechanisms to assist employees to reconcile work and family responsibilities. The pathbreaking provisions will no longer be available to many employees but the norms that were exercised are important historical markers and without them prospects for improvements down the road in family provisions are contingent on a whole range of other factors and therefore less certain.

(Australian Journal of Labour Law; vol 20, no.1, April 2007. pp53-74)