1. This week 10 years ago, the Department of Human Services (DHS) reversed its decision to introduce a casual employment register and to hire more than 1,000 workers as casuals, cutting 2,400 of its permanent staff to mitigate an expected $66 million loss in the 2013 financial year. DHS confirmed it would not be offering any new casual contracts, and casual employees who had already been engaged would be offered non-ongoing contracts with the same paid leave entitlements and job security as other staff.
“This is an important victory for job security in DHS but our work doesn’t stop here,” Deputy National President of the CPSU, Lisa Newman said. “The CPSU will continue our fight for secure jobs for workers in the Smart Centres who are still working on non-ongoing contracts, not knowing what their future holds, not knowing whether their contract will be extended.”
2. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) issued revised guidelines setting out changes to the way it monitored service quality at Australia’s four largest airports, including new measures for the availability and standard of taxi facilities and kerbside space for passenger pick up and drop off, and processes such as baggage claim and check-in facilities. Chair of the ACCC, Rod Sims said checking the quality of service would improve monitoring of airport service quality by taking account of changing market dynamics and technology.
“Airports have the ability to control access to airport land and impede competition for alternatives to on-airport access, so it is important to monitor developments in this aspect of airport operation,” Mr Sims said.
3. A new state-of-the-art, interactive weather resource was unveiled to help people access real-time, user-friendly weather information. MetEye was developed as part of the Next Generation Forecast and Warning System, a $30 million upgrade of weather services through the Bureau of Meteorology funded by the Australian Government. Minister for Environment, Tony Burke said that every day people made decisions based on the weather forecast and access to accurate and clear information was crucial.
“When the rollout is complete, MetEye will display forecasts, satellite and radar imagery, as well as other observations for any location in Australia, enabling users to combine layers of weather information such as temperature, rainfall, cloud cover and wind speed,” Mr Burke said.
4. The CSIRO and the Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO) signed a Strategic Relationship Agreement aimed at high-impact research priorities, allowing the two organisations to share professional development training programs for staff, undertake staff exchanges and joint community outreach activities and share infrastructure. Chief Executive of the CSIRO, Dr Megan Clark said the agreement put two powerhouses together to support high-tech development for Australia, while Chief Defence Scientist, Dr Alex Zelinsky said it was a significant step in conducting world-leading collaborative research for dual-use technologies.
Dr Zelinsky said dual-use technologies had both defence and civilian applications and the two organisations would work together to transition their dual-use research into practical outcomes for national benefit.
5. The SA Government allocated an extra $600,000 to help boost skilled and business migrant numbers in the State over two years, with Minister for Manufacturing, Innovation and Trade, Tom Kenyon saying the Government was seeking to attract people with the skills required to help drive the State’s economic growth. Mr Kenyon said the funding would assist Immigration SA in its marketing strategies to target potential skilled and business migrants in the United Kingdom and Asia.
“We’ll broaden our promotion of the State to remind potential migrants of the many benefits in moving to South Australia: employment, education and lifestyle advantages that we can constantly highlight to help attract people,” Mr Kenyon said.
6. And a decade ago the Nullarbor Plain received South Australia’s highest level of conservation protection, with the State Government proclaiming the region a Wilderness Protection Area, doubling to 1.8 million hectares the amount of land now protected under the Wilderness Protection Act. Minister for Sustainability, Environment and Conservation, Ian Hunter said the area was one of the largest semi-arid karst environments in the world — landscapes formed by the dissolution of soluble rocks such as limestone, featuring caves and sinkholes — and about 390 species of plants and 160 species of animals would benefit from the increased protection, including rare species such as the slender-billed thornbill, the Australian bustard and the Nullarbor daisy.
“The Nullarbor has long been a popular tourist destination, and this proclamation guarantees that future generations of South Australians, and visitors, will be able to continue to enjoy it,” Mr Hunter said.
