Key leaders of Australian Churches, meeting in Sydney, have requested a meeting with the
Prime Minister, John Howard, to express concerns and request clarification of changes
announced by him to the Workplace Relations system.
The issue was on the agenda of the Executive meeting of the National Council of Churches
(NCCA) last week, following statements made by the Prime Minister and the Workplace
Relations Minister, Kevin Andrews, about their proposed reforms. The Executive includes
leaders from the Catholic, Anglican, and Uniting Churches, as well as 12 other national Church
groupings.
“We are uneasy about the bottom line in all this,” said the Revd John Henderson, General
Secretary of the NCCA. “If this is about Australia remaining competitive as a nation, as Mr
Howard has said, then it should not be achieved at the expense of Australian workers and their
families. The value of each worker is not as a commodity, but as a person, a human being, loved
by God. Our community has values that are more important than economics.”
“We would really like the Government to slow down, and step back from its apparent haste. We
ask Mr Howard to heed his own words to use the Coalition’s Senate majority ‘soberly, sensibly,
and wisely’. To rush into this would be to risk a disaster for everyone,” said Revd Henderson.
Australian Churches are among the largest providers of community, education, health, and
welfare services in the country, and have been for many years. They are also significant
employers in the so-called ‘Third Sector’. In some service and educational operations the
Churches employ more people than large corporations.
The National Council of Churches in Australia, formed in 1994, draws together 15 national
Churches in cooperation and partnership. (www.ncca.org.au)
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For further information and comment, contact:
Revd John Henderson (02) 9299 2215 or 0419 224 935