DUBAI-owned DP World Australia has today announced plans to slash more than 10 percent of its workforce, with 100 more jobs scheduled to be axed at both Melbourne and Sydney container terminals.

The cuts — announced to the media before affected workers or their union had been notified — come in addition to another 47 wharfies due to finish up this week in Melbourne.

The Maritime Union of Australia (MUA) said the timing of the announcement — during protected industrial action at the company’s Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane and Fremantle container terminals — was a clear attempt to threaten workers into accepting cuts to their rights and conditions.

MUA assistant national secretary Warren Smith said DP World sacking workers and destroying families to achieve an industrial outcome was "an extreme act that reflected the unfettered corporate power available to bosses in today’s society".

“From day one DP World started with threats to our families. Management have refused to meet telling wharfies that they’ll get an agreement only if they withdraw their claims and accept the company’s claims, which result in less job security and worse conditions,” Mr Smith said.

“It started with threats to workers income protection insurance, now they are targeting wharfies jobs.”

The MUA slammed DP World for notifying media outlets of the cuts before contacting the affected workers.

“What kind of company tells the media about job cuts before talking to the workers who are directly affected?” Mr Smith said.

“This is corporate bullying and intimidation using the livelihoods of wharfies in an attempt to intimidate the workforce into accepting anything the company wants.

“This situation, where a massive multinational company is showing total contempt for Australian workers and their families, shows once again how broken our country’s workplace laws are.

“Threatening people’s jobs, their livelihoods, and their families well-being should never be considered an acceptable way to achieve an industrial outcome.”

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THE Sydney and Melbourne property markets are showing ‘clear signs of recovery’ with auction clearance rates hitting more than 70 percent in both the capital cities, according to RiskWise Property Research CEO Doron Peleg.

According to research by CoreLogic, Sydney hit 77.2 percent and Melbourne delivered 73.6 percent.

“The trend now is very clear with interim results in the 60s and 70s in the past four weeks and final clearance rates above 60 percent for that period. This is significantly higher than the clearance rate of 52 percent a year ago,” Mr Peleg said.

He said a combination of the surprise election results, the RBA interest rate cuts, APRA's changes to floor assessment and tax cuts, which would deliver more funds to households, all contributed to the confidence of the market and, consequently, higher clearance rates that were also connected to higher prices.

“While volumes are still low, in this context it means sellers, generally, don't feel the rush to sell,” he said.

“However, further improvement in auction results and the turnaround in the market are likely to lead to an increased volume as sellers expect stronger demand for their properties and, therefore, are more confident to put them on the market.”

Mr Peleg said the high end of the market continued to lead the way with extremely strong results in Sydney’s eastern suburbs with 90 percent clearance rates, and both Sydney Inner West and Inner South West reaching 87 percent.

In Melbourne the lucrative areas of the Inner East and Inner South continued with their consistently strong results this week delivering 77.3 percent and 76.9 percent, respectively.

www.riskwiseproperty.com.au

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AUSTRALIAN visitors continue to flock to Brisbane in record numbers as the latest statistics show Brisbane has become a favourite destination for Sydneysiders and Melburnians.

Deputy Mayor Krista Adams said the National Visitor Survey from Tourism Research Australia revealed record numbers of visitors from Sydney and Melbourne had converged on Brisbane over the year to March 2019.

“The number of visitors from Sydney climbed 9.4 per cent to reach an all-time high of 923,000 while Melbourne visitors rose 4.6 per cent to reach a record 554,000 over the year,” Cr Adams said.

“The National Visitor Survey also revealed the total number of domestic visitors to our city reached an all-time high and we smashed records across the holiday, business and visiting friends and relatives’ segments.

“Overall, these visitors spent a record amount in Brisbane – up 7.5 percent to $4.8 billion.

“Australians are increasingly attracted to Brisbane as the city offers more to see and do through new hotels and attractions, culinary experiences and entertainment precincts such as Howard Smith Wharves.

“We continue to drive Brisbane as a destination of choice through campaigns in our southern markets.

“Major events over the year also attracted visitors - including the Brisbane International, Australian Youth Water Polo Championships, Asia Pacific Triennial of Contemporary Art, World Science Festival Brisbane and Curiocity - and we continue to work to grow our events calendar.

“Increasing the number of visitors to our city is vitally important to support our small businesses and jobs across our accommodation, retail, hospitality and service sectors.”

Brisbane, National Visitor Survey, year-ending March 2019:

Total expenditure            $4.8 billion up 7.5% - record

Total visitors                   7.6 million up 9.9% - record 

Holiday visitors                2.2 million up 6.8% - record

VFR visitors                     2.9 million up 7.9% - record

Business visitors              1.9 million up 14.5% - record

Total visitor nights          22.0 million up 4.3% - record

www.brisbanemarketing.com.au

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THE Australian Retailers Association (ARA) is hosting this year’s annual 2019 eftpos ARA Australian Retail Awards on August 15 at Myer Mural Hall, Melbourne. 

At this prestigious breakfast event, guests will have the opportunity to network with fellow industry peers and hear from renowned keynote speaker and consumer futurist, Amanda Stevens who will discuss how owners and managers can can engineer a retail business to anticipate the needs of tomorrow's customer.

With 12 awards for the taking, the ARA worked with a panel of expert judges and industry leaders to determine the ‘finest in retail’ across three categories including Customer Experience, People in Retail, and National Retailer. The high standard of submissions received by the ARA this year is a testament to the passionate retailers who contribute to the vitality of this thriving sector. 

See our 2019 eftpos ARA Australian Retail Awards finalists below:

Award category: Customer Experience

Recognising Australian retailers who create and enhance the customer experience at every step of their shopping journey.

2019 Manhattan Associates Excellence in Customer Experience

• PETstock
• Birdsnest
• Brava Lingerie
• On the Run
• Retail Prodigy Group

2019 Daylight Agency Excellence in Retail Marketing

• Bakers Delight
• PETstock
• Brava Lingerie
• Vodafone

2019 Pronto Retail Innovator of the Year

• Biome
• Specsavers
• Myer
• George & Matilda Eyecare

2019 Store Design & Fit-Out of the Year

• First Choice Liquor
• AWPL
• On the Run

Award category: People in Retail

Recognising individuals and employers in the retail industry paving the future of Australian retail.

2019 Rest Retail Business Woman of the Year

• Karina Bruce – Hear Us Roar
• Ellie Degraeve – Go for Zero
• Chelsea McIntosh – Spoilt Gift and Homewares
• Rebecca Peterson – Harris Scarfe

2019 FCB Retail Employer of the Year

• ALDI
• PETstock
• Vodafone
• On the Run
• Retail Prodigy Group
• AWPL

2019 Rest Young Retailer of the Year

• Jacinta Farrell – BCF
• Thomas Kovacs – Harris Scarfe  
• Amanda Styles – Harris Scarfe
• Aled Ball – On the Run
• Julieanne Willson – On the Run
• Marko Krndija – Harris Scarfe

2019 Retail Graduate of the Year

• Esther Laub – The Sydney String Centre
• Anita Holman – NPI
• Jamie Turner – Brand Collective

Award category: Retailer of the Year

Celebrating and acknowledging progressive retailers in Australia who have transformed their business to adapt to the new era of retail.

2019 eftpos National Retailer of the Year

• Kidstuff
• Vodafone
• Retail Prodigy Group

2019 eftpos Digital Commerce Retailer of the Year

• YCL Jewels
• The Party People
• Myer

2019 eftpos Franchise Group of the Year

• Bakers Delight
• Specsavers
• Poolwerx
• Degani

2019 eftpos Independent Retailer of the Year

• The Party People
• Birdsnest
• Brava Lingerie
• Spoilt Gift and Homewares

Tickets HERE.

About the ARA

Founded in 1903, the Australian Retailers’ Association is Australia’s largest retail association, representing a $320bn dollar sector employing more than 1.3m people. As Australia’s premier retail body, the ARA works to ensure retail success by informing, protecting, advocating, educating, and saving money for its 7,800 independent and national retail members. To learn more, visit www.retail.org.au or call 1300 368 041.

THE Federal Government and APRA must act quickly on the recommendations of the APRA Capability Review, or risk leaving consumers further exposed to the exploitation and misconduct we saw during the Royal Commission, Industry Super Australia (ISA) said.

ISA acting chief executive Matthew Linden today welcomed the findings and recommendations of the APRA Capability Review and the need to strengthen the regulatory framework to put members’ interests first.

“This review has exposed a culture of under-reporting, poor regulation and enforcement and a failure to adequately protect consumers from exploitation and misconduct,” he said.

“This review and its recommendations must give APRA the impetus it needs to go after those parts of the sector that exploit vulnerable members for their own financial gain.

“It confirms what the Royal Commission already told us – that consumers have not only been let down by the institutions that perpetrated the misconduct, they have ultimately been let down by the regulator,” Mr Linden said.

“The government and APRA have an obligation to members to act quickly on these recommendations, and put in place the necessary capability, regulatory and enforcement frameworks to take action against those who have committed wrong-doing.”

In its submission to the Capability Review, ISA argued for a more transparent, strengthened regulatory scheme where institutions who do the wrong thing are held to account, and member benefit comes first.

ISA also argued for a greater focus on superannuation regulation and reporting, noting the current discrepancy in APRA’s reporting and regulatory frameworks between superannuation and other financial sectors has left members’ vulnerable to exploitation.

ISA welcomes the recommendations relating to APRA’s supervision of superannuation. In particular, we welcome the following recommendations:

1. Embed, publish, performance benchmarks for super funds and take action on underperforming funds that consistently fail on member outcomes and make APRA’s mandate explicit.
2. Develop a superannuation performance tool.
3. Update its superannuation reporting standards and collect product level data that facilitates accurate assessments of outcomes and comparability across funds and to crack down on non-reporting.

While supportive of the recommendations, Mr Linden said it was important APRA applies it powers fairly, and prioritises decisions and regulatory action in the areas where member harm is the highest.

“We expect any new powers to be applied by APRA in an even-handed way, with appropriate checks and balances, with members’ best interests at its heart,” he said.

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AT THE START of the new financial year, the Tax Practitioners Board (TPB) has revealed that it is currently investigating more than 350 tax practitioners who are suspected of high-risk behaviour including:

• failure to meet personal tax obligations
• over-claiming work-related expenses on behalf of clients
• egregious conduct which is considered 'black economy' behaviour
• non-lodgement of annual declarations
• non-compliance with continuing professional education (CPE) requirements.

A number of these cases were as a result of referrals from the Australian Taxation Office (ATO). The TPB said it continued to work closely with the ATO to identify high-risk behaviour.

TPB CEO, Michael O’Neill said the TPB handed down heavy sanctions for some of the cases it considered in June.

"Of eight cases investigated under the debt and lodgement project, five tax practitioners had their registrations terminated for failure to meet personal tax obligations, four of these with a five-year exclusion period," Mr O'Neill said.

"And of the eight investigations into non-compliance with CPE requirements, five tax practitioners were issued with suspensions, three with cautions and all eight ordered to complete additional hours of CPE."

Mr O'Neill said six tax practitioners were also recently suspended for three months for the failure to lodge their annual declarations.

Due to multiple investigations carried out into high-risk behaviours, the TPB has recently imposed a range of penalties on tax practitioners including:

• a five-year registration termination for failing to disclose approximately $1 million in tax debt and overdue lodgement for more than 30 companies
• a five-year registration termination for fraudulently lodging income tax returns for several clients
• a five-year registration termination for not providing evidence of professional indemnity (PI) insurance coverage since 2017
• a one-year suspension due to investigations indicating the tax practitioner had engaged in conduct that suggested personal spending on cars, holidays and dining expenses over the repayment of tax obligations.

About the Tax Practitioners Board

The Tax Practitioners Board regulates tax practitioners in order to protect consumers. The TPB aims to assure the community that tax practitioners meet appropriate standards of professional and ethical conduct. Follow on Twitter @TPB_gov_au, Facebook and LinkedIn

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SAI Global Assurance, a recognised leader in integrated risk management and assurance services, today announced that it is accepting nominations for the 2019 APAC Food Safety Awards.

Now in its 26th year, the Food Safety Awards honour individuals who make important contributions to food safety in Australia and New Zealand.

Today, more than ever, the global impact of food safety professional's work is clear. The profession is becoming more and more critical in helping organisations build value and remain competitive in what has become an extremely complex and competitive world.

Customer behaviours and expectations have shifted; trust recovery has stalled. The role of the food safety professional is vital to end this erosion in trust and enable their organisations to sustain brand and reputational resilience.

"As long-time champions and practitioners of quality, we understand that applying technology, innovation and fresh thinking to food safety is key to meeting emerging and future challenges," John Rowley, CEO of SAI Global Assurance said.

"This is why SAI Global Assurance is proud to hold the APAC Food Safety Awards, to celebrate the achievements of food safety professionals, who so often are working below the radar. The Awards are the perfect platform to publicly recognise and acknowledge the accomplishments and outstanding work and results of food safety professionals and teams who work tirelessly to ensure the safety of our food supply and the minimisation of any potential harm."

Nominations for this year's awards will be accepted for three categories:

Ross Peters Award for Excellence in Food Safety -- open to any individual who has made a notable contribution to food safety in Australia.

Leaders of the Future -- Food Safety Learning Scholarship -- open to individuals within the food industry that have a junior quality assurance role or equivalent.

Innovators in Food Safety -- open to either an individual or organisation that has developed best in class innovations in technology, process, procedure and training in relation to food safety.

Entrants are shortlisted by an independent panel of recognised Australian food experts -- with this year's panel including:

• Andrea Currie, Coles Brand Manager Policy & Technical Standards
• Debbie Peters, wife of the late Ross Peters, the founder of the Ross Peters Award for Excellence in Food Safety
• Paul Holder, 2018 winner of the Ross Peters Award for Excellence in Food Safety
• Kimberly Coffin, SAI Global Head of Food, Retail and Hospitality -- SAI Global Assurance

Speaking about the Awards, Jessica Kelly, winner of the 2018 APAC Food Safety Award for 'Leaders of the Future - Food Safety Learning Scholarship', said: "It was very exciting and humbling to have been recognised for an APAC Food Safety Award last year, so early into my career. Winning this award has provided me an opportunity to expand my presence in the industry and explore new networks, career directions, skills and mentor opportunities.

"I highly recommend anyone thinking about entering to apply as early as possible to demonstrate their skills, passion and commitment in being a part of a strong future for the industry."

Nominations for the APAC Food Safety Awards close at 5pm (ACT) on 1 August, with finalists being announced on 14 August. Award winners will be unveiled at the APAC Food Safety Awards Gala Dinner on 21 August in Sydney, Australia. The dinner is held as part of the APAC Food Safety Conference running from 20-22 August, hosted by SAI Global.

www.foodsafetyapac.com/award-nominations

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QUEENSLAND'S resources sector continues to underpin the economy and regional jobs after coal exports set a new State record with 21.43 million tonnes of metallurgical and thermal coal exported in June said the Queensland Resources Council (QRC).

QRC chief executive Ian Macfarlane said the 11 percent increase on the same month last year highlighted the increasing demand from world markets for Queensland’s coal.

“Queensland’s coal is the commodity of choice with our high quality thermal coal needed to power high efficient, low emissions coal-fired power plants in Asia and our metallurgical coal used to make steel is building the bridges and skyscrapers in modern cities,” Mr Macfarlane said.

“The 215,00 men and women working across Queensland’s coal industry can be proud of this achievement and it means more jobs and more revenue for Queensland. Last financial year Queensland’s resources sector paid a record $5.2 billion in royalty taxes with coal contributing $4 billion ($12 million a day) to the Government to help build new schools, hospitals and roads.

“But if we are to support jobs at home and export to the world it is essential that we have stable and reliable regulation for our resources sector in order to attract new investment which benefits every Queenslander. People want industry and Government to work together with communities and wider society to promote effective, constructive, and mutually beneficial relationships."

The data from Queensland’s major ports found the majority were operating above average monthly volumes with the Port of Gladstone recording a 5 million tonne increase in coal exports resulting from improved efficiencies and growing demand from overseas customers.

“Queensland’s exports from all resources earnt over $70 billion for the 12 months to May this year for the first time which represents 81 percent of the State’s record export earnings of $85.8 billion. In dollar terms, exports from the resources sector – coal, minerals and gas – are worth more than $190 million every day,” Mr Macfarlane said. 

www.qrc.org.au

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