The Community and Public Sector Union (CPSU) is pursuing a case in the Fair Work Commission (FWC) against labour hire companies undermining workers’ rights in the Australian Tax Office.
The CPSU is supporting a former ATO call centre worker who took his case to the FWC, claiming that as a labour hire employee he was forced to work for 40% less pay and under worse conditions than the ATO’s directly employed staff.
The union argues that the outsourcing of core ATO work is “a blatant rejection” of Labor’s Australian Public Service Strategic Commissioning Framework, which is designed to reduce the outsourcing of core public service tasks.
The CPSU’s submission to the FWC argues that labour hire companies, such as Probe Operations, Serco and Concentrix, are not exempt from “same job, same pay” laws because the scale of the contracts provide value for money to the Australian Tax Office.
AusTender data suggests that labour hire companies hold contracts worth more than $630 million.
The case is about labour hire companies being forced to lift their wage rates to outsourced ATO workers. But the landmark action has implications for labour hire companies in other white-collar industries.
The CPSU has rejected labour hire companies’ arguments in the FWC that they are exempt from the “same job, same pay” laws because the work provides a service, rather than labour.
The CPSU argues the outsourced call centre workers answer the same calls as ATO employees, use ATO systems and equipment, and follow the ATO’s workplace policies and procedures and are therefore entitled to the same pay and employment conditions.
CPSU national secretary Melissa Donnelly said millions of people doing their tax returns are unaware that the call centre workers helping them do the same work as ATO workers but do not work directly for the tax office, and earn a lot less for doing the same job.
“Labour hire companies claim they provide a ‘specialised service’, but there’s nothing specialised about answering ATO calls, using ATO systems, following ATO procedures and doing work directed by the ATO,” Donnelly said.
“These outsourced call centre workers are doing the same job as their ATO counterparts, but with worse pay and conditions. This is ATO work. It should be done by ATO employees.”
The FWC is considering the extent to which the employer is involved in the performance of work, including the degree to which they direct, supervise or control the work of the employees.
The CPSU said the ATO sets performance benchmarks, determines work priorities and provides the necessary training and resources to ensure compliance with its standards and objectives.
While the labour hire providers manage rosters and provide day-to-day supervision, the union says that does not constitute meaningful involvement in the ATO’s work framework.
“The responsibilities retained by each of the labour hire providers, including payroll, human resources and compliance with employment laws, are matters relating to the employment relationship rather than to the performance of work, and are therefore of limited weight under [the law],” the CPSU submission said.