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Christian Porter signals industrial relations changes but rules out small business award

<span>Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP</span>
Photograph: Mick Tsikas/AAP

Christian Porter has ruled out introducing a small business award but promised to simplify conditions in the hospitality sector in a heated party room discussion on the Coalition’s industrial relations reforms.

After the collapse of roundtable negotiations in September, the industrial relations minister stressed the need to develop an incremental package that stands a “realistic” chance of passing parliament at the meeting on Tuesday.

The government will introduce an omnibus bill by year’s end including project-life pay deals for new work sites, a definition of casual employees, and more money for the fair work ombudsman to help small business use payroll software to comply with pay laws, Porter revealed.

Related: Sally McManus cites 'concerning signs' government is prepared to support pay cut reforms

Bitter divisions between employer groups about the extent they should cooperate with unions cruelled hopes of a more wide-ranging package to boost jobs.

On Tuesday, the Australian Bureau of Statistics released payroll data revealing jobs decreased 0.9% in late September, the fortnight the government cut jobkeeper wage subsidies. The figures reinvigorated debate about whether the government should create jobs by maintaining economic supports rather than pursuing microeconomic reform.

Under questioning from Liberal MP Jason Falinski, Porter told the party room unions would not agree to reforms that cut them out of the bargaining process, such as individual pay agreements. But he also denied that his reforms would amount to boosting flexibility at the cost of increasing union involvement.

Porter left many details unclear including whether the government will agree to unions’ and the Business Council of Australia’s call for a fast-track for union-negotiated pay deals.

He confirmed the government intends to relax the “better off overall test”, which is currently strictly interpreted so that employees hypothetically disadvantaged by future roster changes can be enough to prevent a workplace pay deal being approved.

The Australian Council of Trade Union’s secretary, Sally McManus, has warned there are “concerning signs” the government could look to cut workers’ take-home pay, such as by allowing part-time workers to do extra hours without overtime rates.

But when Liberal senator Andrew Bragg asked about the possibility of a small business award, Porter ruled it out, suggesting instead that less onerous pay rules could be introduced for small businesses in existing modern awards.

According to several accounts of the meeting, the government will pursue award simplification in the hospitality sector to prevent rigid descriptions of duties and classifications imposing multiple pay rates in the one workplace.

Porter defended the prospect of getting unions to agree to project-life pay agreements for new sites, which would prevent them striking mid-project for higher wages. He claimed negotiations had revealed unions could cop the reform to boost jobs.

Other uncontentious reforms will include a definition of casual work, and an easier pathway for casual workers to convert to permanent part-time.

Porter told Guardian Australia that “until the bill is released all matters considered by the working groups remain under active consideration”.

The minister on Tuesday also released a review of the powers employers gained under the jobkeeper program to vary workers’ hours, duties and location of work.

The report, by the Nous Group, found 70% of employers used the powers to direct employees with alteration of hours the most common change.

The review detailed issues including employees “who were asked to work more hours than usual felt considerable pressure to agree” and employers who said their workers “were being unreasonable in refusing a request to work additional hours”.

Porter said the powers allowed employers to “quickly adapt to changing conditions and stay connected to their workforce, ensuring they would be ready to bounce back when conditions improved”.

But the extent of that recovery came under question on Tuesday when the ABS revealed that between 19 September and 3 October 2020 payroll jobs decreased by 0.9%, compared with an increase of 0.5% in the previous fortnight. Total wages paid decreased by 2.2%, compared with an increase of 1.3% in the previous fortnight.

Changes to jobkeeper came into effect on 28 September, reducing the payment to $1,200 a fortnight for full-time workers and less for part-time. It is expected the changes will rip $10bn out of the economy by Christmas.

Although Victoria has led the way with a 7.7% loss of jobs between March and October, in the reference fortnight all states and territories lost jobs.

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The shadow treasurer, Jim Chalmers, and the shadow employment minister, Brendan O’Connor, said the numbers “show 440,000 jobs have been lost since the virus outbreak, and the government expects 160,000 more Australians will join the jobless queues by Christmas”.

“This is the consequence of a Morrison government that cuts support even as unemployment is rising,” they said.

In question time, the treasurer, Josh Frydenberg, responded that more than half the jobs lost between March and October had already been regained.

Victoria had lost 73,000 jobs in the last two months under stage-four lockdown, while the rest of Australia gained 172,000 jobs, he said.

Frydenberg has been engaged in a bitter stoush with the Victorian premier, Daniel Andrews, over the pace of lifting coronavirus restrictions.