The Australian Industry Group has called on the Victorian Government and the Victorian Opposition to work together and reach an immediate resolution on dealing with Victoria's threatened WorkSafe system.
The Victorian Head of the Australian Industry Group, Tim Piper, said: "The greatest threat to the system is the increased costs being imposed on employers through premium increases, and those costs must be kept to a minimum.
"The Government must come to the party and find a way to keep the cost of premiums down and agree to place a cap on premium increases for the next few years. The Opposition must equally agree to work to pass the current Government legislation dealing with WorkSafe Victoria," Mr Piper said.
"There is no more important Worksafe issue for employers at the moment, or indeed for the system as a whole, than keeping premiums at the lowest possible level. In order to do this, the Government and the Opposition need to work together to reach a resolution. Some give and take is essential for the sake of the system as a whole.
"The consequences of not working together could be disastrous as already there are suggestions that Worksafe premiums will need to increase next year if this legislation does not get implemented. However, an agreement between the Government and the Opposition could prevent that from occurring. It is incumbent on both sides to make that happen. Businesses should not be forced to foot the bill because both parties cannot agree.
"That is what Victorian employers – both large and small – would be expecting from our politicians. Working together to ensure we have a viable and acceptable WorkSafe system," Mr Piper said.
Further comment
Tim Piper – 0411 430 301
