If I were minister for employment services: No more bastardry dressed up as policy
If I were minister for employment services, I’d begin by stating what should already be obvious: Australia’s employment services system is not fit for purpose.
Recent articles in Employment
13 April 2025
Sherlock Holmes investigates the wages explosion that never was
I like to imagine that, if Arthur Conan Doyle were still alive, and had turned his creation, Sherlock Holmes, to solving the economic mysteries of the 21st century, he would have written this conversation:
1 April 2025
Building Australia’s future – For whom?
As the next federal election looms, the Albanese Government is preparing to campaign under a new slogan: “Building Australia’s Future”.
15 February 2025
OSCA’s quiet arrival: Rethinking how Australia defines work
Australia’s new job classification system, OSCA, replaces ANZSCO with little fanfare. Its streamlined approach raises questions about workforce planning, transparency, and the evolving definition of work.
23 January 2025
Reimagining public housing: the transformative potential of Centrelink’s Voluntary Work Program
The current housing crisis is not an accident. It is the logical outcome of transforming homes into investment vehicles. And it has been decades in the building. The only thing unique about the present crisis is that it is now destabilising both the major political parties – in that sense the housing crisis is now a political crisis. The impending federal election campaign will no doubt reveal a raft of proposed political fixes that may or may not exacerbate the crisis.
31 December 2024
The public service: back in from the cold
The Albanese government has begun to rebuild Australia's shattered Public Service. The government's fate depends significantly on it -- but there's much still to do.
10 December 2024
A flicker of reform: Can Labor avoid political collapse?
As the Albanese government announces modest employment services reforms, it faces growing disillusionment and risks losing ground to Peter Dutton’s Trump-inspired exploitation of economic and cultural frustrations.
18 July 2024
Productivity, innovation and industrial structure
The traditional market model of comparative advantage denies Australia the more promising strategic opportunity to identify and capitalise on areas of potential competitive advantage in the high productivity, high-skill jobs and industries of the future, including advanced manufacturing. Instead, with this model we will be locked into low-productivity, low-wage industries, with limited scope for uplift through technological change and innovation, writes Emeritus Professor Roy Green AM.
11 July 2024
A blueprint for inaction - the government's feeble response to Employment Services crisis
Amid rising demands for robust employment reforms, the Albanese government's response disappoints, offering vague promises over decisive action. This critique unpacks why minimal improvements and continued reliance on flawed policies may leave the most vulnerable behind, questioning if mere mediocrity is the new standard.
17 February 2024
Leading oil and gas producers plan to keep pumping
USA plans to maintain high levels of oil and gas production until at least 2050 so it can export freedom. Healthy ecosystems require integrity, not just biodiversity. Endangered slug runs circles around arty rivals.
10 February 2024
Environment: Humans dont make history we play host
How germs made history. Greenhouse gas emissions keep rising but USA and Europe are still the major causes of global warming.
15 January 2024
Goodhart's Law and the overlooked complexities in Australia's employment services sector
Yesterday, I wrote that the Jevons Paradox is a good explanation for the problems of the National Disability Insurance Scheme (NDIS). Today, I look at another theory Goodharts Law to explain what is wrong with Australias $3 Billion a year employment services sector.
