AHA Opposes Minimum Award
Wage Rises

February 14 2003- The Australian Hotels Association (AHA) has supported calls from Tony Abbott, the Federal Minister for Employment and Workplace Relations to encourage the Australian Industrial Relations Commission (AIRC) to assess whether workers will lose their jobs before allowing minimum award wages to rise.

According to the AHA National Executive Director Mr Richard Mulcahy:

"In the hospitality industry, the annual minimum award wage rise has meant many of our member hotels have had to reduce casual staff numbers in an effort to afford the wage rise."

"This situation is damaging for hotel employees and employers alike. The hospitality industry employs over 250,000 Australians and we want to see these people keep their jobs".

"It is essential the AIRC has a balanced view on this issue. There should not be a competition between pay rises and employment".

"The Australian Hotels Association is fully supportive of the Federal Government's view on this issue and will seek urgent talks with the Australian Democrats to show our support for the proposed measures".

"The employment prospects of workers should be high on the agenda for AIRC, There is little point raising the minimum award wage if it means that thousands of employees are put out of work."

"Last year the AIRC awarded an $18 increase across all award wages, with no requirement for increased productivity offsets. This led to job losses across the industry."

"This was despite the AHA calling for a sixth month wage freeze for hotels in the four and five star sector still reeling from the collapse of Ansett Airlines and the September 11 terrorist attacks".

"The AHA argued extensively in front of the AIRC that four and five star hotels would be forced to reduce staff numbers. A year on, we have had reports from AHA members confirming that the wage rise led to job losses."

"This year, the ACTU has lodged submissions seeking a $24.60 per week increase in award wage rates. If such a claim was granted, there would inevitably be more job losses."

"In the event that any increase is to be awarded, it should be moderate, being substantially less than the increase awarded in May 2002."

August 20 2002 - The Liquor, Hospitality & Miscellaneous Workers Union reported that 6 weeks after hotel workers won an $18 a week Living Wage increase a 5- star Sydney hotel found a way to claw most of this money back - they decided to introduce a $2 meal charge for their workforce.

The $2 charge introduced on Monday at the Marriott Hotel and the Hyde Park Plaza Hotel - means that by the end of this week the AIRC $18 a week pay increase will be whittled down to small change.

" We feel we are being cheated out of our well-deserved pay increase by this back door charge. Free meals from the hotel kitchen is a tradition in the hospitality industry which should be kept," Estrelita Reyes, LHMU Hotel Union member, said.

The workers at these two hotels have embarked on a campaign to defend their Living Wage pay increase by today occupying the hotel canteen at lunch time, refusing to pay the $2 charge and raising a chant for their traditional free meal - the one perk they can expect from working in high-class hotels.

The AHA always opposed the pay increase

" The Australian Hotels Association and its members fought hard in the Industrial Relations Commission to deny our members any pay increase," Mark Boyd, LHMU Hotel Union NSW Assistant Branch Secretary said.

" They told the full bench of the AIRC that low-waged hotel workers who earn only just over $12 an hour - should get no pay increase.

" The Industrial Relations Commission slapped down this outrageous attempt to deny these workers some wage justice.

" The hotels lost - so now they give the pay increase with one hand - and take it back with another."

The hotel's workforce consists mainly of immigrant women from the Philippines, China, Vietnam and the Pacific Islands. Together they make the LHMU Hotel Union one of the few growing unions in Australia.

" These members are angry. The $2 may be small change to the hotel executives. Hotel executive get a lot more pay, and a lot more perks for working in the hospitality industry.

" This is the one small perk our members get and they mean to keep it.

" If the Hyde Park Plaza and the Marriott steal this perk from our members here, we can expect other Sydney hotels to follow the lead."