TV ads show IR laws in practice

Liam Mitchell

Most of the people in the Howard government's TV advertising blitz for its planned new industrial relations laws are highly paid actors receiving $6000 each to appear in the ads, vastly above the standard rate. They were even given a choice about whether they would appear in a political advertising campaign. Even those whose appearances ended up on the cutting room floor were still paid the $6000 fee.

But look closer. See those smiling workers in the background happily going about their jobs — did they get paid the normal rate for "extras" appearing in political ads?

Workers at Calbah Industries, the Dandenong factory featured in one ad, were shocked to see themselves promoting the proposed new IR laws. They had been asked by their employer to do some overtime during the filming of what they were told was an occupational health and safety video.

They received a paltry $13 (paid at the standard rate; the company doesn't pay overtime penalty rates) to work alongside actors on $6000 to make an advertisement promoting something they didn't even agree with! The award base rate for extras in ads would have given them about $77, although agreements for political ads are 20 times that. Their employer pocketed the $7000 the company was given to have the ad filmed at the factory.

If the ads are supposed to show what the government's new IR regime will be like, then this ad certainly did that!

From Green Left Weekly, November 2, 2005.

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From GLW issue 647