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The First Two Decisions of the Australian Fair Pay Commission: A Critique

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  • Philip Lewis

Abstract

The Australian Fair Pay Commission (AFPC) was established by the Howard government under the controversial WorkChoices legislation. It was heralded by its supporters as a major improvement on the previous system of safety-net wage cases under the Industrial Relations Commission and universally condemned by the union movement and Labor. Others questioned whether a minimum wage was needed at all or even whether it was a major impediment to labour-market adjustment. The AFPC’s first and subsequent decisions were, therefore, looked on with interest by the media, academics, politicians and vested interests. This paper provides a critique of the AFPC’s first decisions and suggests how the process of arriving at a minimum wage could be improved.

Suggested Citation

  • Philip Lewis, 2008. "The First Two Decisions of the Australian Fair Pay Commission: A Critique," Agenda - A Journal of Policy Analysis and Reform, Australian National University, College of Business and Economics, School of Economics, vol. 15(2), pages 45-64.
    • Handle: RePEc:acb:agenda:v:15:y:2008:i:2:p:45-64
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    File URL: http://press-files.anu.edu.au/downloads/press/p87541/pdf/15-2-AR-1.pdf
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    2. Andrew Leigh, 2004. "Minimum Wages and Employment: Reply," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 37(2), pages 173-179, June.
    3. Charles Brown & Curtis Gilroy & Andrew Kohen, 1982. "The Effect of the Minimum Wage on Employment and Unemployment: A Survey," NBER Working Papers 0846, National Bureau of Economic Research, Inc.
    4. Moore, D, 2002. "Minimum wages: Employment and welfare effects, or why Card and Krueger were wrong," Australian Bulletin of Labour, National Institute of Labour Studies, vol. 28(3), pages 163-183.
    5. Andrew Leigh, 2003. "Employment Effects of Minimum Wages: Evidence from a Quasi‐Experiment," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 36(4), pages 361-373, December.
    6. Andrew Seltzer, 1997. "An Evaluation of the International Evidence on the Employment Effects of Minimum Wage Legislation," Australian Economic Review, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne Institute of Applied Economic and Social Research, vol. 30(2), pages 208-214, June.
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    Cited by:

    1. Phil Lewis & Michael Corliss, 2011. "The economic boom, population and structural change and the market for tradespersons," Australian Journal of Labour Economics (AJLE), Bankwest Curtin Economics Centre (BCEC), Curtin Business School, vol. 14(3), pages 289-305.

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