EXPLANATORY STATEMENT
Statutory Rules 1983 No 141
Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations
(Issued by the Authority of the Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations)
Sub-section 10(2) of the Salaries and Wages Pause Act 1982 provides that the Governor-General may make regulations conferring during the prescribed period powers on a specified tribunal or authority being a tribunal or authority referred to in sections 7, 8 and 9 in relation to a specified matter or in relation to matters included in a specified class of matters being powers that would but for that section be exercisable by that tribunal or authority.
Regulation 3 of the Principal Regulations restores power to the relevant tribunal or authority in relation to the making or varying of an award or determination, or the making, varying or certifying of an industrial agreement so as to increase the rates, or minimum rates of remuneration payable to certain Commonwealth employees. Schedule 1 contains the relevant information in relation to the matters provided for in regulation 3.
Regulation 2 of the Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations (Amendment) amends Schedule 1 of the Principal Regulations by adding the items set out in Schedule 1 of the amending regulations. Schedule 1 of the Principal Regulations provides an exemption for those groups of Commonwealth employees directly linked for pay purposes to particular parent awards or determinations who have not yet received movements already determined in their parent awards consistent with the National Wage Decision of the Australian Conciliation an Arbitration Commission of 14 May 1982.
Sub-regulation 4(1), of the Principal Regulations restores power to the relevant tribunal or authority in relation to the making or varying of an award or determination or the making or varying of an industrial agreement so as to increase the rates, or minimum rates of various allowances payable to certain Commonwealth employees. Schedule 2 contains the relevant information in relation to the matters provided for in sub-regulation 4(1).
Regulation 3 of the Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulation (Amendment) amends Schedule 2 of the Principal Regulations by adding the items set out in Schedule 2 of the amending regulations. The allowances referred to in Schedule 2 of the Principal Regulations are allowances which were adjusted for Australian Public Service employees prior to 23 December 1982 and which need to be adjusted for employees in other Commonwealth authorities on the basis of long-standing arrangements whereby those authorities apply Australian Public Service conditions.
Regulation 5 of the Principal Regulations restores power to the relevant tribunal or authority in relation to the making or varying of an award or determination for the purposes of certain claims by Commonwealth employees. Schedule 3 contains the relevant information in relation to the matters provided for in regulation 5.
Regulation 4 of the Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations (Amendment) amends Schedule 3 of the Principal Regulations by adding the items set out in Schedule 3 of the amending regulations. Items 8 and 9 exempt claims for reduced hours. Items 10, 11 and 12 exempt claims for pay increases, to enable the determination of pay adjustments consistent with the National Wage Decision of the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission of 14 May 1982. Item 13 exempts a claim for a disability component in pay rates. The exemption will enable a decision to be brought down by the
Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission on a matter heard prior to the commencement of the Act. Item 14 exempts a claim for a ratings allowance for Licenced Aircraft Mechanics required to work on a new type of aircraft.
Overview
The Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations, issued in 1983 under the authority of the Minister for Employment and Industrial Relations, were designed to address the economic challenges posed by the salaries and wages pause introduced by the Salaries and Wages Pause Act 1982. This Act was enacted to temporarily suspend wage increases in the public sector in order to curb inflation and stabilise the economy. The regulations aim to provide specific exemptions from this pause, allowing certain tribunals or authorities to adjust wages and allowances for particular groups of Commonwealth employees in alignment with broader economic policies and decisions, such as the National Wage Decision of the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission. By doing so, the regulations seek to ensure that wage adjustments are made fairly and consistently across different sectors of the public service.
Scope and Application
The Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations pertains to the specific exemptions under the Salaries and Wages Pause Act 1982, which applies to the Commonwealth of Australia. These regulations focus on restoring certain powers to tribunals or authorities regarding the making or varying of awards, determinations, or industrial agreements to increase remuneration or allowances for specific groups of Commonwealth employees. This Act is particularly concerned with employees who have not yet received certain pay movements that were determined in their parent awards or agreements, as well as those who require adjustments based on long-standing arrangements applying Australian Public Service conditions. The exemptions and restorations of powers are detailed in various schedules within the regulations, each addressing specific groups of employees or types of claims. Additionally, the regulations provide for amendments through subordinate instruments, which further refine the scope of exemptions and the restoration of powers to relevant tribunals or authorities.
Key Provisions
The primary sections of the Salaries and Wages Pause (Exemptions) Regulations (C2004L06123) outline the specific exemptions granted to certain groups of Commonwealth employees from the general pause on wage increases as mandated by the Salaries and Wages Pause Act 1982. Section 3 of these regulations restores powers to the relevant tribunal or authority, enabling them to adjust or certify awards, determinations, or industrial agreements to increase remuneration rates for certain Commonwealth employees (s. 3). Sub-regulation 4(1) similarly allows for adjustments to various allowances for certain Commonwealth employees, as detailed in Schedule 2 (s. 4(1)). Regulation 5 provides further exemptions, allowing the tribunal or authority to deal with specific claims by Commonwealth employees, such as those for reduced hours, pay increases, disability components in pay rates, and ratings allowances for Licensed Aircraft Mechanics (s. 5).
The Act imposes specific obligations on the relevant tribunal or authority, mandating that they exercise their powers under the regulations to ensure that certain groups of Commonwealth employees receive appropriate adjustments to their remuneration or allowances. This includes adjusting wages and allowances consistent with the National Wage Decision of the Australian Conciliation and Arbitration Commission of 14 May 1982 and applying Australian Public Service conditions to other Commonwealth authorities where applicable (s. 3, s. 4(1), s. 5). Additionally, these authorities are tasked with resolving claims related to reduced hours, pay increases, disability components in pay rates, and allowances for specific roles such as Licensed Aircraft Mechanics, in line with the exemptions provided in the regulations (s. 3, s. 4(1), s. 5).
The Act does not explicitly outline specific offences or penalties for breaches within the text. However, breaches of regulations made under the Salaries and Wages Pause Act 1982 could potentially lead to civil or administrative consequences, depending on the nature and severity of the breach. Typically, such breaches might result in penalties that align with those prescribed by the primary Act or other relevant legislation, which could include fines or other corrective actions. The maximum penalties would depend on the specific regulatory framework governing the breach at the time of the infraction.