Bills Digest no. 67 2009–10
Safety, Rehabilitation and Compensation Amendment Bill 2009
WARNING:
This Digest was prepared for debate. It reflects the legislation as introduced
and does not canvass subsequent amendments. This Digest does not have
any official legal status. Other sources should be consulted to determine
the subsequent official status of the Bill.
CONTENTS
Passage history
Purpose
Background
Financial implications
Main provisions
Contact officer & copyright details
Passage history
Date introduced: 21 October 2009
House: House of Representatives
Portfolio: Education, Employment and Workplace Relations
Commencement: Royal Assent
Links: The relevant links to the Bill, Explanatory Memorandum
and second reading speech can be accessed via BillsNet, which is at http://www.aph.gov.au/bills/. When Bills have been passed they can
be found at ComLaw, which is at http://www.comlaw.gov.au/.
To provide
the Minister for Education, Employment and Workplace Relations with the
absolute discretion to consider requests for declarations of eligibility for a
licence under the Safety Rehabilitation and Compensation Act 1988 (the
SRC Act).[1]
The SRC Act is the legislative
basis for the Commonwealth workers’ compensation scheme. It establishes and
regulates the scheme for compensating and rehabilitating Commonwealth workers
who are injured either out of or in the course of their employment.[2] It also covers private corporations
that are licensed to self-insure their worker’s compensation liabilities under
the Comcare scheme.
In 1992, the SRC Act was amended
to enable privatised Commonwealth government business enterprises to remain
under the scheme. Corporations competing in the market place with formerly
Commonwealth owned businesses were also able to apply to join the scheme as
self insurers.
The Howard government extended
the eligibility to apply to be a self-insurer under the scheme, making it
possible for Optus to be eligible to apply for a self-insurance licence. This
opened the gate for a number of corporations with no historical connection to
the Commonwealth to apply to be granted self-insurance licences.
In the past year and a half, there has been a sizable
increase in the number of employees covered by the Comcare scheme (410 000) with
the current number of licensees under the scheme having reached 29. The
expansion of responsibility in the number and range of industries covered by the
scheme has raised certain concerns and a desire that all employees are
sufficiently protected by robust occupational health and safety[3] safeguards and appropriate worker’s compensation benefits.[4]
On 11 December 2007, Julia Gillard, Minister for Education,
Employment and Workplace Relations, announced a review of the Comcare scheme
and a moratorium on granting further self-insurance declarations (of
eligibility to apply for a self-insurance licence under the Comcare scheme).[5] Issues of particular interest under the review are:
the appropriateness of OHS and workers’ compensation coverage
under the Comcare scheme for workers employed by self-insurers;
whether the current arrangements for self-insurers pose any
risk to the Commonwealth or to state and territory schemes;
why corporations seek to join the scheme; and
whether there should be changes
to the eligibility rules for obtaining a licence to self-insure.[6]
According
to the Explanatory Memorandum, the amendment will be of ‘no financial cost to
the Commonwealth’.[7]
Item 2 amends section 100 of the SRC Act providing
that the Minister is empowered but not required to consider a request for a
declaration of eligibility to be granted a licence for self-insurance under the
Comcare scheme.
This amendment would continue the aforementioned moratorium
announced in December 2007 until 2011, by which time it is expected that the
new uniform occupational health and safety laws will be implemented in all
states and territories.
The Senate
Scrutiny of Bills Committee made the following comments about item 2:[8]
The Committee considers that the Minister’s absolute
discretion in these circumstances may be an inappropriate delegation of
legislative power. However, since the bill appears to be seeking to formalise
in legislation what is a clear policy decision, the Committee leaves to the
Senate as a whole any further consideration of this issue.
Members, Senators and
Parliamentary staff can obtain further information from the Parliamentary
Library on (02) 6277 2404.
Juli Tomaras
23 November 2009
Bills Digest Service
Parliamentary Library
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